Home
by caro1414
Summary: Future Fic: 10 years, 2 kids, and a divorce later, how did they end up here?
1. Chapter 1

a/n: I do not own the Gilmore Girls in any way, shape or form.

This is a future fic, and some things will be OOC for everyone involved, but that is part of what makes fan fiction. Please read and review!

**Chapter 1:**

He couldn't believe it, he had thought about this moment, what he would do, what he would say. After all the unpleasantries they had been through when they divorced, this was something he never really expected to see. In all of the times he imagined running into her, he never expected to see her in his arms. The feeling in the pit of his stomach was something else he hadn't expected. He had moved on, clearly she had moved on as well, so why did he have to control an urge to walk over to the table and punch that smug asshole in the face.

"I have a reservation for Huntzberger" Logan smiled at the maitre'd .

"Of course, for 2, is the rest of your party here yet, Mr. Huntzberger?"

"Not yet, she'll be meeting me soon" he told her, "Could you tell me, are there any other Huntzberger reservations tonight? My parents mentioned they might be coming here tonight" he lied.

"Yes, I have one, but I don't think she is your mother" the maitre'd laughed, "Follow me please"

"Of course" Logan smirked, she was still going by Huntzberger, that had to count for something.

"Your server will be right with you" the maitre'd smiled as she walked away, leaving Logan to stare intently at his wife, ex wife.

She wasn't his anymore, and seeing her with Jess, that ass who had ditched her without even a word, and would then come sweeping into her life like some sort of superhero, that was even more annoying. Logan hadn't liked Jess from the moment he had met him, and he firmly believed that any fascination Rory had with Jess was more to do with the idea of what could have been, rather than a real relationship. Rory hadn't said yes when Logan asked her to marry him, but somehow after the campaign trail, they had found each other again and two short years later, they married. He couldn't pinpoint when it had started going wrong, maybe it was after their son, Christian Richard Huntzberger was born, at first everything was great, but soon, Logan found himself working long hours, and he knew his wife resented him for it. For a while things had been better, they had a daughter, Lorelai Honor Huntzberger, and again, they fell into the same trap. It was never that Logan had stopped loving Rory, nor that Rory had stopped loving Logan, their issue however was that Logan felt a need to constantly be sure his family was provided for, and he never seemed to fully understand that they had everything they needed, and by the time he realized all his wife wanted was for him to come home, she had served him with divorce papers.

The divorce hadn't been pleasant, Logan saw his kids every other weekend from Thursday night until Monday morning. He never imagined in a million years that at 37 years old he would have been married for 10 years, have 2 kids, and be divorced. He touted his accomplishments as the fact that he was the head of a multi billion dollar media conglomerate, but he had lost his family, and it wasn't until he sat there watching as his Rory laughed over a candle lit meal with another man that he realized the terrible mistake he had made.

_"Mr. Huntzberger you have a package from your wife" his assistant, Sheila had told him, he could sense a little bit of fear in her voice._

_"Alright" he nodded as he took the thick envelope, "Is there anything else?"_

_"No sir" Sheila shook her head and excused herself from the room._

_What on earth could she have been so worried about?_

**_Logan,_**

**_I am writing you this because I don't know how to tell you in person. Don't come home tonight. I think that it is best for us, and our children if we separate. I have spoken to a lawyer to begin formal separation proceedings, and I am having the locks changed on the house._**

**_As per the prenuptial agreement I signed when we got married, because we have minor children, I am entitled to the matrimonial home. I have left a suitcase full of clothing with your secretary, and you can forward me an address to have your belongings shipped to. If you cannot send me that information by the end of the week, I will ship everything to the apartment in the city._**

**_I hope that for the sake of our children this can remain cordial. This is not what I wanted for us, but it has become increasingly apparent that you are not willing to make quality time with your family a priority, and so now, I will stop asking you to choose. It is my hope that we can come up with a custody agreement that allows you meaningful time with our children while they are able to stay in the comforts of the home they have been raised in. _**

**_I did not want you to be blindsided by my attorney contacting you, so you are hearing it from me. This marriage is broken beyond repair, and as much as it saddens me to admit that, we must move on. Please make all further communication through our lawyers, and if it pertains to the children, you may pass messages through Alice. We don't need to make this any harder on ourselves, or our children than it has to be._**

**_I'm sorry,_**

**_Rory Huntzberger_**

_The letter had been so clinical, so cold, the only thing that let him know that she had struggled through writing it was the fact that he could see water stains on the paper, he had to assume those were tear drops that had fallen while she wrote it. He saw another drop splash on the paper, he hadn't even realized he was crying as he read the letter. She had given up on them, he had broken them, and now, he was alone._****

"You didn't follow her here, did you?" Honor sighed as she sat down at the table with her brother breaking him out of his thoughts.

"I had no idea she was here" Logan defended himself, "But I do know that she still goes by Huntzberger"

"It's a powerful name" Honor shrugged, "She'd be a fool to get rid of it"

"Hon" Logan smirked, "How are you? You look great"

"I'm good Logan, thank you" she smiled, "So if you're here tonight, and she is here tonight, where are my niece and nephew?"

"I'm guessing they are with Rory's mom" Logan shrugged, "I don't know though"

"Well, let's get to the topic at hand" Honor changed the subject, she didn't want to discuss her brother's failed marriage, she knew Logan still loved Rory, and she knew that Rory, despite all of the hurt and pain he had caused her, she knew that Rory still loved Logan.

xxxxxx

Rory Huntzberger sighed as she looked over at her ex husband as he sat having dinner with a mystery blonde, she couldn't see her face, the woman had sat down while Rory wasn't looking, she looked like she was probably beautiful.

"So do you think your kids will like me?" Jess pestered her once more about the prospect of meeting her kids. It was too weird for her, sure she and Logan had been divorced for almost a year, and separated before that, but she still wasn't ready for them to meet another man she would be spending time with.

"Jess it's not as simple as that" Rory shook her head, "My kids are young, they barely understand that Daddy isn't coming home"

"Well will I get to see your house?" Jess pushed her a little bit further.

"No" Rory shook her head, that was another rule she was firm on. The divorce settlement had been as clear as the prenup she had signed. She was entitled to a substantial stake in Huntzberger Publishing Group, a 15% share to be exact, and she was entitled to $40,000 per month in spousal support plus an additional $60,000 per month in child support. Logan was responsible to pay for the kids private school, and Rory would keep their house in Hartford while Logan kept the apartment in New York. Rory left the marriage with her trust fund and all of the assets she had brought into the marriage, but even if the house was technically hers, she knew it would always be theirs. It was the house they had spent their marriage in, they had watched both of their kids have their first steps in that house, and no matter what a deed said, it would always be their home.

"Rory is this even moving forward?" Jess was clearly annoyed now.

"Look, Jess, this is fun, we're having fun, but we don't need to make this so heavy. Let's not try to force things to happen, what is going to happen will happen, so lighten up" she sighed, "If you'll excuse me, I need to go to the ladies room. If the waiter comes by, please order me another vodka martini" and with that, she stood up

xxxxxx

"Logan don't" Honor saw his eyes following her towards the ladies room, "Leave her be"

"We don't even talk anymore Honor" Logan protested, "After all those years, all the nights we shared a bed, a nanny and driver take our kids from point A to point B, we literally have spoken through lawyers for the last year. I just want to know she's ok"

"Logan" Honor began, but before she could fully protest, he was gone, walking towards the ladies rest room.

Once he got to the door, he suddenly realized he didn't have a plan. What was he going to do? Barge in and force all of the women out, and so he waited, and thought, thought about what he was going to say. I mean really, what was she thinking, being here with him?

"Logan" Rory felt her breath catch as she walked out of the ladies room.

"I just wanted to..." he began, fumbling over his words, "I saw you, and I wanted to say hi. I didn't think your date would particularly want to see me" he shrugged.

"Hello Logan" Rory repeated, a small smile breaking at her lips. She was glad that she had taken the time to pick out an outfit that night. She was wearing a dress he had always loved, despite the fact that it was just a simple black v-neck dress, he had always loved her in it, she had paired them perfectly with a pair of peep toe pumps.

"You look great" he commented, he had immediately noticed that she was wearing the dress he had loved. She had bought it years earlier on a weekend in Los Angeles, shortly after the birth of Lorelai.

"Thank you" Rory smiled, "So do you"

"Where are the kids?" he asked her, knowing it wasn't his weekend.

"They are with my Dad" Rory explained, "Gigi is home from college for the weekend so they are having a family weekend"

"Of course" Logan nodded, "Well give your family my best" he told her, suddenly feeling bad for having ambushed her like this.

"I will" Rory nodded, "You should probably get back to your date"

"My date?" Logan felt his brow crease.

"Blonde, bright red dress, sitting with you..." Rory looked at him as though he had lost his mind.

"Rory" Logan laughed, "That's Honor"

"Oh" Rory nodded, "Well...um...ok, so you get back to Honor, and tell her I will say goodbye before I leave"

"Of course" Logan smiled, "It was...good seeing you"

"Sure" Rory smiled before she turned on her heels and returned to the table, by the time she got back her drink was waiting for her, "Sorry Jess" she smiled, "I ran into my-"

"Husband" Jess had seen him walk by the table just after Rory had gone to the ladies room.

"Ex husband" Rory corrected him, "He just wanted to say hi" she explained, "He is here with his sister"

"I don't care who he's here with Rory" Jess rolled his eyes, even though years had gone by, he still had the same attitude he had always carried with him. When they were young she had found it endearing, but at the age they were now, she more or less found it annoying that he wouldn't just act like an adult from time to time.

"He just wanted to know where the kids were" Rory continued to defend him.

"And a text message wouldn't suffice" Jess snapped back, "Or was his assistant not with him to type it out for him?"

"Jess" Rory warned him, she was sick of the attitude when it came to Logan, "You just said you wanted to meet my kids. Now if you ever want that to happen" she told him, "You will learn to be respectful of the fact that Logan Huntzberger is their father"

xxxxx

"Well look who's back" Honor mused, "And alive. That is progress"

"We just caught up" Logan told her, "She's going to come and say goodbye before she leaves. You two were always close"

"That is a mistake I will never make again" Honor laughed as she took a sip of her scotch.

"What is?"

"I won't get close to anyone you are with" Honor explained, "Losing her, losing a friend, it hurt too much"

"Honor you didn't have to lose her, you two can still be friends" Logan told her as he picked up a breadstick.

"No" she shook her head, "Family rules dictate that in the case of a divorce, you side with family"

"Honor you can still be friends with Rory" Logan laughed, "Come on, eat"

They talked aimlessly throughout the meal, not touching on anything important, Honor asking about the kids, hoping they would be able to get to the Vineyard together for a long weekend during the summer. Logan had explained that Rory was taking them to New York for July 4th, correspondence through their nanny, Alice, had established that she would like to stay at the apartment that weekend, Logan had obliged considering he would be in San Francisco for that week. Rory had also hoped that she would be able to have the kids over Labour Day, but it looked increasingly like Logan would have to make a claim to his holiday so that Honor could spend some time with the kids.

They had discussed his considering purchasing a place in the Hamptons for them all to go to, and Honor had obviously been on board. She knew that Logan bought extravagant things for his kids because he felt bad about the divorce, and also because he knew he should be around more. It was a typical Mitchum response, Logan and Honor had spent their entire lives with these displays of affection, but Honor had hoped that Logan wouldn't do the same.

"Hi" Rory breathed as she interrupted the conversation, causing both Logan and Honor to look up at her.

"Rory!" Honor squealed as she stood up to hug her, "You look amazing, how are you?"

"Oh you know" Rory shrugged, she clearly felt awkward, "This is Jess, my...friend" she smiled, "Jess this is Honor Huntzberger, Logan's sister"

"Hey" Jess nodded as he extended his hand to her.

"Good to see you Jess" Logan swallowed his pride and extended his hand to Jess, trying to suppress his urge to punch him square in the jaw.

"You too, man" Jess nodded, "We uh...we should get going"

"Oh Rory we should catch up. Text me, we can get the kids all together" Honor smiled as she hugged Rory once more, "I miss you"

"I'll get in touch this week" Rory promised as she smiled at them both and walked out the door with Jess.

"Friend?" Jess glared at her once they were out at the valet, waiting for her Range Rover.

"Jess" Rory rolled her eyes, "I'm not going to rub it in. I'm not going to do a happy dance in front of my ex husband and his sister over the fact that I am dating someone. You know I'm not that person"

"Whatever Rory, why don't you just drop me off at home" Jess shook his head.

xxxxxxx

"Mom?" 9 year old Christian Huntzberger walked into the kitchen and grabbed a cookie off of the plate.

"Yes?" Rory smiled as she closed the fridge door. "Where is your sister?" she asked, noticing only her son was standing in front of her.

"She's in her room" Christian shrugged.

"Alright" Rory nodded, "What's up?"

"This was at the door" he handed her a heavy, silver envelope with thick cursive writing that addressed Rory, Christian & Lorelai Huntzberger, the return address made her groan, it was a party being thrown by the Huntzberger Publishing Group. Unfortunately, despite no longer being a part of that family, she still owned a stake in the company, and she was also a best selling author. Her book, a semi autobiographical tale of a woman who had every opportunity at her feet, had felt like she had lost it all when she finally got up the strength to divorce her CEO husband. Writing the book had been what got Rory through the 8 month separation that had occurred before the divorce had become final. She had begun writing it the day she left, 2 weeks after Christian's 7th birthday, and she had written it when the kids were with Logan, it had been her therapy. She had published it under her own name so most people knew the story was about her and Logan, but she didn't care. Huntzberger had published the book, Rory wasn't sure why she had published it there, maybe as a backwards way of showing the world, and Logan, that despite everything that had happened, she didn't hate him. The book wasn't scathing, she could still remember the dedication word for word.

**_To the love of my life, Logan Huntzberger, you gave me the most amazing gift, you gave me your love, and our two children, and a million memories. Love you always and forever - Ace._**

She had written that dedication on a particularly rough night, one of many where she had questioned if she had made the right decision by leaving him. It was the night she had seen her children attending a party in New York City with Logan, and his new girlfriend. Sure the woman had only lasted a few months, and she knew from the kids that Logan had just introduced her as a coworker, but that night she had admitted to herself as she wrote, that she wished she hadn't walked away because all things considered, Logan Huntzberger was the love of her life.

"What is it?" Christian brought her out of her thoughts.

"It is an invitation" Rory explained, "To a party at Daddy's work"

"Why did you get invited?" Christian asked, he was old enough to understand that his parents weren't together, and that meant he got more presents at Christmas and his birthday, but he still missed their family moments.

"Because I write books for the company, and because I still own part of it" Rory explained as she opened the envelope and pulled out the formal invitation. "It's for next Friday, so do you want to go with your Dad, or do you want to come with me?"

"Do I have to go?" Christian groaned, he hated the parties, he had hated them for as long as he could remember, probably longer if he could remember his baby years.

"Not if you don't want to" Rory shook her head, "You can call Dad and ask him if you can stay in with Alice if you want"

"Can you call him?" Christian sighed. Even if he knew his parents were likely never getting back together, he still tried from time to time to force the subject, he knew his mom wasn't as happy as she used to be, even if she pretended, and he knew his Dad was miserable except for on his weekends with the kids.

"We'll see" Rory sighed, "Why don't you go ask your sister if she wants to come"

"Do you promise to call Dad?" Christian countered.

"No" Rory laughed, "But as your mom, I am telling you to go and ask your sister if she wants to go to this party. If she doesn't, we will figure something out with your Dad so that you don't have to go"

"Fine" Christian sighed as he walked out of the kitchen and up to his sisters room.

Rory let out a long sigh, she had a feeling Logan had no idea she had been invited to this gathering. Fortunately, despite running in the same social circles, they hadn't run into each other at any events since the divorce. Normally if the party was on Logan's weekend with the kids, Rory would go and Logan would stay in, the opposite would occur when Rory had the kids, but she knew that because it was a Huntzberger party, her former in laws would be expecting her, and they would probably also be expecting the kids. She knew she needed to discuss it, and so she picked up the phone and dialed the number that had become more and more familiar over the years.

"Huntzberger residence" the maid answered the phone.

"Can I please speak to Mr. Huntzberger" Rory asked her, "Tell him this is Rory Huntzberger"

"One moment please Ms. Huntzberger" the maid put her on hold immediately.

"Mitchum Huntzberger" Mitchum's voice boomed into the phone.

"Mitchum, hi, it's Rory" Rory felt her mouth getting dry.

"Rory, hello" Mitchum's voice became much more casual realizing it was his former daughter in law on the other end of the phone, "What can I do for you? Is everything alright with the kids?"

"Everything is fine" Rory confirmed, "I actually just got this invitation to the party next week for Huntzberger, and, well, Christian isn't really wanting to go"

"Did you talk to Logan about it?" Mitchum asked. It was strange how Rory and Mitchum had maintained somewhat of a relationship with each other after the divorce. Maybe it was because of the professional relationship they had cultivated during the marriage, but Rory always felt comfortable discussing things with Mitchum. Nothing to deep, or personal, but when it came to the kids, she knew Mitchum was watching out for his grandchildren.

"Not yet" Rory told him, "You know we don't really talk"

"I know" Mitchum sighed, "Well, personally, I think it is important that Christian go, I understand these parties can be boring, but working in publishing might be what he ends up doing, and all the connections he can get will help him, even if he's young now, he'll appreciate it when he's older"

"I guess I'll just tell them they have to go" Rory agreed, "Will Honor be bringing Aly and Tyler?" she asked, referring to the children she who had always called her Aunty Ror.

"I believe so" Mitchum explained, "Honor was talking about getting a suite at the Plaza for the kids to hang out in with the nanny if it all became too much for them. I'll ask her if Christian and Riley can stay there"

"Thank you Mitchum" Rory felt a sense of relief come over her, "I'll see you next week"

"Goodnight Rory"

"Was that Dad?" Christian asked her as he caught his breath from running upstairs.

"No that was Grandpa" Rory explained, "And you and Ri are coming" she told him, Riley had been the nickname Lorelai IV had been given at her birth.

"Whyyyy?" Christian groaned.

"Because we said so" Rory laughed, "Aunt Honor has a suite at the hotel that you and Riley can play in with Aly and Ty if yo get bored"

xxxxxxx

Logan sighed as he closed the doors to his kids empty bedrooms. After the divorce he had purchased a big house, wanting the kids to feel comfortable when they came over, but he realized increasingly that he was always alone in the house. He had dated a few women since the divorce, but none of them made him particularly happy, and so, like most nights he found himself sitting in the media room, watching television and drinking alone.

As her glanced through his mail he saw a silvery envelope addressed to him.

"Fuck" he muttered to himself, it was the Huntzberger Party he had been hearing about at work for the past few weeks, and he knew that as a part owner, and author for the company, Rory would be there. He could expect in the next few days he would get an e-mail from the Alice suggesting that the kids would prefer to stay in at their mothers house, and that she would bring them over on Saturday morning. This was going to be it, he was going to be attending his first social event that Rory would be at as well, it would be like old times, except unlike old times, she wouldn't be his anymore. She would probably bring Jess, god he didn't know what he would do if she brought Jess. Tossing back the rest of his drink, he could only wonder one thing as he sat in the dimly lit room. How did they end up here? More importantly, how could they get out of here?


	2. Chapter 2

A/N: Thank you for the reviews/follows/fave's that is awesome, please keep reviewing, reviews make me sooooo happy. Anyway, moving on, I have another chapter all ready to go so hopefully you guys enjoy it. Anyone who is wondering, Rory and Logan are the endgame, it might take a little bit of time to get them there, but it happens, and it is going to be kind of fun along the way.

**Chapter 2:**

Shira and Mitchum had sent a car to pick up the kids several hours earlier, that way they could spend some time with their cousins, and so Rory sat staring at herself in the full length mirror, there was one problem that she just couldn't come up with a solution to.

What was she going to wear?

Rory had an expansive, and expensive closet. Bergdorf Goodman, Bloomingdales, Neiman Marcus, Saks Fifth Avenue and Barneys had become her favourite places to shop over the course of the past decade, and her closet was full of amazing designer pieces from those stores. Her jewelry was an entirely different story, full of Lorraine Schwartz and Harry Winston, Tiffany's and Neil Lane, she had antique pieces, couture pieces and pieces that cost more than she would ever care to know.

She didn't know why she cared so much what she was wearing, she went to these events all the time. This one however, this one was different, it would be the first time she and Logan were both at an event since the divorce, to make matters more complicated, their kids would be there as well. Rory had toyed with the idea of bringing Jess, but realized that would only cause problems for her children, and that was the last thing she wanted.

As she walked back into the closet she stared at the garments in front of her. The closet was cramped full of clothes, even though she had enough room to expand into Logan's closet on the other side of the hall to the bathroom, she wasn't willing to do that. Much like she knew that the house she lived in would always be _their _home, the closet would always be _his _closet.

She knew that she had to choose a formal gown, a cocktail dress wouldn't work for this kind of event. She couldn't help but smile thinking of how adorable Christian had looked in his tux, and Riley was wearing a pink sequined dress that Shira had gotten for her. If her kids looked that good, Rory knew she would need to look amazing as well. She had curled her hair and swept it back from her face so that it cascaded down her neck, and her hangs brushed to the right of her face.

When Rory saw the mint green sequin, she knew it was the dress she should wear. She had never worn it before, but it was a BCBGMaxAzria dress with a deep v and a slit that went mid way up her thigh. This dress was a show stopper, and paired some killer Jimmy Choo pumps, she knew that she would be one of the best looking people at the event that evening. That is the kind of talk she wanted to make happen, she didn't want anyone dwelling on poor divorced Rory, here at a party hosted by a family she used to be a part of, she wanted everyone to see that she was alright.

As she slipped the dress on she immediately felt herself exuding confidence, this was the dress that would get her through the evening. That is also what she kept telling herself as she sat in the back of the limo on her way to the Plaza Hotel in New York City.

"Hey Paris" Rory smiled to herself as she saw her friends name on the caller ID.

"You on your way to the city?" Paris asked her, knowing that Rory had fully told her about the party she would be attending that evening.

"You know I am" Rory told her simply, "What's up?"

"Just wanted to remind you, that you didn't want this divorce, and neither did Logan, so no one would fault you if you two had a good, drunken screw tonight" Paris told her.

"Paris, you know I'm dating Jess" Rory rolled her eyes.

"I hate Jess" Paris told her firmly, "He is still the same hoodlum he was when he was 17, you aren't 17 anymore Rory"

"I know I'm not" Rory countered, "But the fact of the matter is, Logan and I are divorced"

"Rory, you made a rash decision" Paris told her.

"Paris where is this coming from?" Rory groaned, "You hated Logan"

"I haven't hated Logan since the bridesmaids incident. He loved you Rory, his only fault was that he worked too hard to provide a great life for you" Paris defended him, "He needed more balance, yes, but he loved you, and you loved him"

"Look, Paris, I am just getting to the Plaza, I don't have time for this. I will see you for dinner tomorrow?" Rory told her as the limo door opened and Rory could see all sorts of flashbulbs going off around her from the paparazzi.

"Of course" Paris told her, "Bye, have fun"

Rory could hear photographer's yelling at her from all different directions and after a few moments on the red carpet she walked gracefully into the venue. The problem was, she didn't feel graceful, it was like what Paris had said irked her, she had felt naked. She had felt like a huge part of her was missing when she entered the party. A part of her that had walked those carpets with her for 10 years. A part of her that she could see walking towards her in a gorgeous black tuxedo and a childish grin on his face.

"You look great, Ace" he kissed her cheek politely, "Where are the kids?"

"They came with your parents" Rory explained, "Hanging out in Honor's suite I think"

"Of course" Logan nodded, "Well, I'm going to go get them" he explained, "But we're all at the same table. Mom and Dad didn't want to separate the kids, they figured we could deal with it for one night" Logan shrugged, "I'll see you in there"

And with that he was gone, headed towards the elevator, she knew that she shouldn't have cared, but the way he had told her how great she looked made her go weak in the knees. It was probably just all of the stupid crap Paris had been telling her on the ride in that had her thinking like this, but the idea of the 4 of them having dinner together, even if it was at a table with the rest of the Huntzberger family, it felt right.

"Daddy!" Riley squealed as he walked into the suite.

"Hey pretty girl" Logan lifted her high into the air, she was his princess, Lorelai Honor Huntzberger, or Riley as she was called, was the light of her fathers life. Every time he saw that little girl he fell more and more in love, every time he saw her he knew he had made the biggest mistake of his life by not making them a priority when he and Rory were together. "You look beautiful, Mom picked out a great dress didn't she?"

"Grandma Shira gave it to me" Riley smiled as she snuggled her head into Logan's shoulder, "You look pretty"

"I look handsome" Logan corrected her, "And so does your brother. You ready to go Christian?"

"Sure" Christian shrugged as he walked towards his father.

"Alright, come on. Aly, Ty, is mom just getting ready?" Logan nodded at his niece and nephew.

"Yes Uncle Logan" Aly told him, "She's doing her hair and then we are coming down"

"Perfect, Aunt Ror is downstairs too so you can see her" Logan smiled, he wasn't sure what they called Rory these days, but he hoped that his niece and nephew still considered her to be their aunt. Aly was 12, and Tyler was 7, compared to Christian who was 9, and Riley who was 4, they all got along remarkably well when they were together, but since the divorce they didn't see each other as often as they used to. "Come on Chris, hold my hand please"

"Dad" Christian groaned, embarrassed that at the age of 9, he still had to hold his father's hand.

"Sorry dude" Logan laughed as Riley left her head rested on his shoulder, "Your mom would kill me if anything ever happened to you"

"Fine" Christian reluctantly grabbed Logan's hand as they waited for the elevator, "Are we sitting at a table with you, or with Mom and her boyfriend?"

"You know Mom's boyfriend?" Logan had to admit he was shocked, sure they had never really discussed how they would tell the kids they were moving forward, and the kids had met a coworker of Logan's, but that was all she had ever been, a coworker.

"I just heard her talking to Aunt Lane about him" Christian shrugged, "Aunt Lane doesn't like him"

"I see" Logan bit his tongue, not wanting to tell his son that Aunt Lane was an excellent judge of character, "Anyway, we are all sitting at a table together"

"With Mom? And you?" Christian was clearly surprised.

"I want to have dinner with Mommy and Daddy" Riley told them as they stepped into the elevator and began the ride down to the main floor.

"Well we are going to have dinner together tonight cutie" Logan smiled, "Your hair looks nice"

"Thank you" Riley giggled.

Logan couldn't help but notice that Christian was the spitting image of his mother, from his dark brown hair to his pale complexion and bright blue eyes, he was as smart as Rory was too, Logan knew that Christian would always be okay because he was so much like his mother. Riley, even though she was only 4, she was the female version of Logan, she had a strong resemblance to Honor as well, gorgeous blonde hair and hazel eyes that could always melt his heart. He instinctively felt the need to protect his little girl, he never wanted her to know that there were bad things in the world. She was too perfect to have to deal with real life problems.

"Where's Mommy?" Riley asked as they stepped out into the bustling lobby.

"She is waiting at the table" Logan told her as he tightened his grip on Christian's hand.

"Is it through there?" Christian pointed to the door he had just seen his Grandfather disappear into.

"That is it" Logan nodded as they headed towards the massive ballroom, "We're sitting with Mom, Grandma, Grandpa, Aunt Honor, Uncle Josh and your cousins, so if you see them let me know"

"Mommy's dancing" Riley laughed as she pointed out Rory on the dance floor. She was dancing with Finn and she was laughing, she had a beautiful laugh and she was absolutely lighting up the room. It had been a long time since Logan had seen her like that, and truthfully, he found himself somewhere between happy that she was laughing, and heartbroken that he couldn't remember the last time he had seen her like that.

"She looks beautiful" Logan whispered to his daughter, "Come on, lets go sit, I see Grandma"

"Hi Grandpa" Christian smiled as he sat down in the seat with his name on it next to his Grandfather.

"Hello there son" Mitchum smiled, "You look dapper"

"What does dapper mean?" Christian asked him with confusion in his eyes.

"It means you look wonderful" Shira came from behind him and kissed him on the cheek, "Did you see Tyler and Alyxandra?"

"Yes" Christian nodded, "Are they coming down soon?"

"They should be down any minute" Shira told him, "Tyler will sit beside you"

"Great!" Christian was relieved to know he wasn't going to be stuck between adults. "Can I have a ginger ale?"

"I'll go get it for you" Logan told him as he put Riley on the floor, "Stay with Grandma, ok?" he looked at his daughter before he began walking across the ballroom to the bar.

"Hey mate" Finn approached him, clasping his shoulder.

"Finn, how are you?" Logan hugged his old friend, "it's been forever"

"I'm great, how are you?" Finn told him.

"I'm as good as you can expect" Logan shrugged, "You know how it is"

"To be divorced and still in love with my ex wife?" Finn smirked, "No, I don't know how that is"

"I'm not still in love with her" Logan rolled his eyes as they took a step closer to the bar, "Can I get a ginger ale and whatever the best scotch you have is?"

"Yes, sir" the bartender nodded as he went to fix the drinks.

"I saw you staring at us, when we were dancing, as friends, obviously" Finn back peddled, "You miss her"

"I have 2 kids, and I spent 10 years of my life with her. Of course I miss her" Logan shook his head as he took his drinks, "Are you coming to see the kids?"

"I'll be around" Finn explained, "But I don't want to interrupt your family time" he smirked.

xxxxxxx

"Josh can you please take all of the kids up to the suite?" Honor sighed, the kids were all becoming more restless as the meal drew to an end.

"Sure" Josh nodded as he stood up, "Come on kids" he went and picked Riley up, "Aly, Tyler, say bye to Aunt Rory"

"Bye Aunty Ror" Aly hugged Rory tightly around the shoulders, "I miss you"

"Goodbye sweetheart" Rory smiled, feeling relief that she could still maintain a relationship with the kids she had watched grown up.

"See you later Aunty" Tyler gave her a quick kiss on the cheek before following his father.

"Well the kids seem well" Shira smiled, "We don't see them as much as we would like to" she looked between Rory and Logan.

"Since the divorce" Logan finished for her as he tossed back another scotch.

"Logan" Rory gave him a warning look. The two of them had been enjoying somewhat of a pleasant evening, they had talked and chatted, they enjoyed each others company.

"Oh come on Rory" Logan looked at his ex wife, "It's true. My parents don't see their grandchildren as much as they used to because its awkward for them to call you and ask to take the kids, and I only see them for a few days a month, so they don't want to take away from our time together"

"Logan don't do this" Honor warned him, "Why don't you drink some water"

"I don't need water, Hon" Logan rolled his eyes, "I'm sorry, lets just go back to not talking about it, ok?"

"Sorry" Rory looked at her former in laws, "If you want to see the kids, just call me, we can always arrange something"

"That would be nice" Mitchum smiled, "Are you writing at all, Rory?"

"A bit" Rory shrugged, "As much as I can"

"Anything you think will be worth reading?" Honor smiled.

"Well I hope so" Rory laughed, "This one is more fictional, going back to when I lived in Stars Hollow, you know, small town charm, that kind of life"

"Well you'll be able to touch on Jess" Logan gritted his teeth, he needed to get out of there, "I'm going to go" he looked at his parents, "Mom, Dad, Hon, Josh, it's been fun. Rory I hope you have a wonderful evening" he told her, somewhat truthfully as he got up from the table and stormed out of the room.

It was too much for him, he needed to get out, he needed his kids, and he needed to be somewhere other than here. He kept jabbing the button on the elevator, willing it to come faster.

"Logan" she called behind him, he just kept hitting the button, she called his name again, "Logan", the second time it was softer, like she had used to talk to him when they were happy, the sultry tone she would use when she was calling him back to bed, that was the tone she used the second time.

"We need to go back to not talking" Logan shook his head, still jamming his finger into the elevator.

"Logan where are you going?" Rory asked him as she stopped next to him at the elevator.

"I'm going to get my kids" Logan told her as the elevator door opened, "It is my weekend with the kids, I want to spend it with my kids, not with a bunch of rich assholes in a tux"

"Logan" Rory repeated his name once more as she followed him into the elevator.

"I can't do this Rory" Logan told her simply, "This" he gestured to the space between them, "This hurts too much, standing here, in front of you like this, with our kids, smiling and having dinner. I can't do this, and you told me time and time again that you couldn't do this, when you cowardly sent me a fucking letter saying our marriage was over, you established that you couldn't do this. So don't give me those puppy dog eyes like we should be able to. It's too hard"

She didn't know what to say, obviously he was right. She had left, she walked away, after trying time and time again to call him home for dinner. He made it sound too simple, he made it sound like this was what she had wanted.

"Logan" she repeated, closing the gap between them, "Please don't do this. Don't say those hateful things, Logan just calm down"

"Rory I'm going to get the kids, we are going to go to the car, and have the car drive us to the apartment. I can't do this" Logan repeated as the doors opened and he stepped out, "Please just leave it for now"

"Fine" Rory admitted her own defeat, "I'm spending the night in the city" she told him, "Can I see the kids tomorrow?"

"Seriously Rory?" Logan rolled his eyes as they stood in the hallway. "I get every other weekend with my kids, and you want to cut into that?"

"I'm sorry" Rory backed off for a moment, before reconsidering what she had done, "Logan we can try to get along. We can try to have a good relationship for the sake of our kids. Don't our kids deserve that much?"

"Rory you chose to leave" Logan practically shouted, "You didn't give me a choice in the matter. You decided it was done, and you walked away, now you want me to learn how to be your friend? We were never friends, we never knew how to be friends"

"Get in here" Rory grabbed his arm and dragged him into her own room. She had purposely booked one a couple doors down from the kids. "Grow up Logan. Grow the fuck up. I'm sorry. I'm sorry that we didn't work out, that is really unfortunate, I really wish we could because it would be so much easier for us to have worked out than for us to be sitting here like this. All I want to do Logan is -"

"What Rory? What do you want to do? I can't stand this, I don't remember what it is like to be happy because all I want is my family back, but you can't move backwards and so I will continue seeing my kids practically never, and I don't get my house, the house that was ours, instead I live in this huge empty place, and I can't stand it"

"So stop" Rory begged him, "Relax for a minute Logan, please, we cannot be at each others throats"

Before he knew what he was doing he had bridged the gap between them, his lips hovering over hers, "Tell me to stop" he breathed, he knew she could smell the liquor on his breath, but he needed to be close to her. He hadn't been close to her in far too long.

"Logan" she breathed, suddenly the world was falling out from underneath her.

"Tell me to stop" he told her again, "Tell me to stop and I'll stop"

"Logan" she repeated, and before either of them knew what was happening, his lips crashed down on hers, his hands finding her hips and pulling her closer to him, she couldn't stop, she didn't want to stop. His lips were on her neck and her arms were around his neck pulling him closer to her. "Logan" she breathed again when she could finally pull herself away from him.

"I'm sorry" he stepped back, their actions sobering him up considerably, "I shouldn't... you're seeing someone. I'm sorry"

"It's ok" she whispered, staring at the ground between them, "I'll always love you Logan. You will always have a piece of me, you will always be the father of my children, and I will always love you. But we can't do this, we didn't work, I wish we had worked Logan"

"I'm sorry I let you down, Ace" he hadn't called her that in years, but tonight he had said it twice, the playful pet name that he had given her nearly fifteen earlier. So much had changed since then.

"We both made mistakes Logan" Rory stroked his cheek gently, "You should go get the kids"

"Call, tomorrow" Logan told her as he stumbled backwards towards the door, "We can get lunch, or ice cream or something"

"Thank you" she nodded before he left, leaving her, alone in a hotel room. It was ironic, she had left him because she didn't want to be alone all the time, she wanted to share her life with someone, and now, there she was, staying in an over priced hotel, in a beautiful dress, and she was spending the night, alone.

xxxxxxxxx

"Alright guys, come on" Logan smiled as he tried to pry his son away from his PlayStation, thankfully, Riley wasn't consumed yet by technology and was always happy to spend time with her father.

"Where are we going?" Christian asked without even looking up from the game.

"We are going to meet your mom for ice cream" Logan told him, "She's still in the city"

"Mom!?" Christian immediately put his game on pause and looked to his father.

"Yes, ice cream with Mom, we thought it might be nice for us to do something...together" Logan explained. Rory had called him that morning and they had discussed the previous evening, well, they had discussed everything except for the kiss. They both knew it would be difficult, they had spent over a year communicating through lawyers and nannies, they needed to learn how to be a family, without being what they used to be. They needed to work with each other to be able to sit at birthday parties, school plays and the weddings that would take place in the future, they both needed to grow up.

"Like as a family?" Christian was standing beside his dad, his eyes full of hope.

"Chris" Logan bent down onto his knee, "Ri, come over here please" he told her, "I want to be clear about something" he began as Riley stood in front of him, not with the same hope in her eyes, "Your Mom and I aren't getting back together, but we both love you kids so much, and so we are going to work really hard to try to talk more, and even see each other from time to time because that is what is best for you two" Logan explained, "But do not get caught up in the idea that Mom and I are going to be together again, just never forget that we love you both"

"You weren't even there" Christian mumbled.

"What do you mean?" Logan asked, hating seeing the heartbreak in his son's eyes.

"When she said you were leaving. Why didn't you tell us you were leaving?" Christian demanded an answer from him.

"Truthfully?" Logan tried to buy himself some time to consider an answer, he couldn't tell him that Rory had told him not to come, Rory had said she didn't want to see him at the house anymore, "Mom and I didn't want to confuse you, or make this any harder than it needed to be, so we did what we thought was best"

"You were a coward"

"I know" Logan nodded, his son was right, he had been a coward for not fighting for his family. "But come on, lets go, we need to meet Mom"

"Daddy, did you stop loving Mommy?" Riley added to the conversation.

"No" Logan shook his head as he lifted her up, "I will always love Mommy, and I will always love you, and I will always love Christian, so why don't we go so that we can have some ice cream. I know you love ice cream"

xxxxxxx

Rory had been surprised that Logan had been willing to get all of them together. They hadn't been together, the 4 of them since Christian's 7th birthday, a piece of information that unfortunately had not gone unnoticed by her son.

She was meeting them at Serendipity, a place they had gone all the time when Christian was young and Logan spent a lot of time in the city. It was a place with happy memories, she had a photo of Logan holding Christian, he was maybe 3 at the time, and the two were just smiling at each other, there was so much love in that photo.

Rory pulled her hair into a ponytail on the top of her head before leaving the hotel room and beginning the walk to Serendipity. She wasn't sure if Logan was going to be driving the kids, or they were walking, but she knew she needed some air, to decompress before she saw them all together.

"Hey Paris" Rory smirked as she flipped open her cellphone.

"How was the party?" Paris asked her simply.

"It was...awful" Rory sighed, "Dinner was good, we had a great meal, the 4 of us"

"Well that's good" Paris sounded optimistic.

"Not so much" Rory laughed, "Then the kids went to play, and we got into a fight, so Logan wanted to leave, and I followed him"

"Please tell me you two screwed the shit out of each other" Paris sounded far too excited about the prospect.

"No Paris, we didn't screw the shit out of each other" Rory couldn't help but laugh. Paris was married, had 3 kids and was a doctor, but when they talked, it was like they were 22 again, "We kissed, and immediately realized that was a bad plan"

"It blew your mind" Paris stated simply, "And that terrifies you, Gilmore"

"It's still Huntzberger, you know that" Rory ignored her comment.

"You'll always be Gilmore to me, even if I wish you were still married to Huntzberger" Paris retorted, "Anyway, I have to go pick Ashley up from ballet, so call me later"

"Sounds good" Rory agreed, "I'm just about to meet Logan and the kids for ice cream"

"Seriously Rory, you couldn't have opened with that?" Paris laughed, "Goodbye"


	3. Chapter 3

A/N: Nothing has changed, I still don't own the show. Thank you all for the reviews, please keep them coming, they motivate me so much! This is kind of a fun chapter, we see some witty Rory/Logan banter.

**Chapter 3:**

The ice cream date had gone pretty much as they both expected. They walked on eggshells, smiled at their kids, laughed, and both of them missed the way things used to be, but they knew enough to never tell each other that. Because Logan still had a bit of work to do in the city, the kids had gone home with Rory to Connecticut, with the promise that they would see each other in a few weeks, and a promise from Rory that they would talk about having dinner as a family sometime in the next couple of weeks as well.

Logan didn't hold out much hope for that, he knew Rory was still hurting, and he knew that ice cream and dinner probably wouldn't change that. As he sat alone, eating dinner in his much too large house, he thought back to how badly things had gotten. There was no way to pinpoint one moment where everything had gone wrong, instead it was a snowball of poor choices, decisions to work late and miss dinners that had left him without his family.

_"Honey, hi" Logan breathed into his phone as he stared at his computer._

_"You're not going to make it?" Rory sighed into the phone, "Again"_

_"Ror I'm sorry" Logan told her, "I'm swamped here. Did you get my present?"_

_"Yes Logan, and I'm sure whoever the associate at Tiffany's is that you have on call is really glad you are swamped too" Rory gritted her teeth, "You haven't been home for dinner all week"_

_"I know" Logan told her, "Today just got away from me, I promise to make it up to you this weekend"_

_"Don't make promises you can't keep" Rory muttered before she slammed the phone down, unable to control the tears that were coming to the edge of her eyes._

He had made so many empty promises to her in the last year of their marriage, he hadn't meant to, it hadn't been intentional, it just happened. He had missed her but he had become so obsessed with having a successful company that he didn't know how to make both happen.

He looked at the photo above the mantle, it was a photo of the 4 of them on vacation in St Barts, from the Christmas before they had split. They were happy, and laughing, the photo hadn't been staged, it had been the perfect coincidence that someone had snapped a photo where Riley and Christian had been laughing hysterically, while Logan and Rory happened to be gazing into each others eyes, with perfect smiles on their faces, and all the love in the world between them. The moment had been fleeting, they had probably fought just afterwards, he didn't remember, but he did remember in that moment how much he had loved her.

xxxxxxxx

"Hey, what are you doing here?" Rory stared at the door, she was shocked that he was standing there.

"Hi" Jess shoved his hands in his pockets, "I hope its alright that I stopped by"

"Well you're here" Rory shrugged as she stepped outside the door, closing it behind her, "It's nice to see you"

"It's nice to see you too" Jess leaned forward and kissed her gently.

"Jess my kids are inside" Rory told him when she pulled away.

"I know" Jess nodded, "I want to meet them, I want to move forward" he told her, "I'm sorry for dinner, when we saw their Dad, I would never hold that against them"

"You would never hold it against them?" Rory crossed her arms over her body, "Jess those are my kids you are talking about, and their father. They love their Dad more than anything in the world"

"Rory come on, I promise to be on my best behaviour, I just want to be a part of your life"

"You don't get to say a negative word about their Dad" Rory told him, swallowing the lump that was swelling up in her throat.

"Scouts honour" Jess told her.

"Alright, come on in" Rory opened the door, "Christian, Ri, come here for a second"

"Yes Mom?" Christian walked into the foyer, looking from his Mom to the stranger in front of him.

"Where is your sister?" Rory sighed.

"She's talking to Daddy on the phone" Christian told her.

"Ok" Rory nodded, "Well, Christian, this is my friend, Jess" Rory nodded to Jess, "Jess, this is my son, Christian, he's 9"

"Hi" Christian muttered and looked at the ground.

"Hey buddy, you look just like your mom" Jess told him, trying not to come off too strong.

"I know" Christian agreed as he bit his bottom lip, "I'm going to go get Riley"

"Thanks sweetie" Rory smiled as he ran into the office, "Christian is a lot like me, a little shy, tough shell to crack" Rory explained.

"He seems cool" Jess rocked back and forth on his toes.

"Mommy?" the little voice came from behind her.

"Hi sweetie" Rory reached down and picked Riley up, "This is my friend, Jess"

"Hi Jess" Riley waved to him.

"Hey Riley" Jess smiled, "You, you look so much like your Dad. That blonde hair, those eyes"

"You know my Daddy?" Riley smiled as she leaned her head against Rory's shoulder.

"We've met a couple of times" Jess nodded, "How old are you?"

"I'm 4" Riley held up 4 fingers.

"Wow" Jess grinned, "4, that was a good age"

Riley giggled against her mother's shoulder, "Can I go to my play room and colour?" she asked.

"Of course" Rory smiled and put her down, "Go on, but bedtime is in an hour, so if you want to watch a show first let me know"

"They are cute" Jess told her honestly.

"You mentioned Logan, and you were nice about it" Rory smiled, "Thank you"

"Well I promised you I would be" Jess laughed, "Will you show me around?"

"Of course" Rory nodded, "Right here" she pointed to the right, "Is the dining room" it was a huge room with a 12 person mahogany table, "We picked up the table on a trip in Montreal, we had it shipped here, it was a huge pain" Rory laughed.

"Wow" Jess smiled, "And you...dine...in here?"

"Formal dinners, birthday dinners, parties" Rory shrugged as she moved to the left side of the door, "And this, this is my library. I have so many first editions in here, I just love it, I swear when I was pregnant with Riley, all I did was sit in here and read"

"Is Riley short for something?" Jess asked as he looked through the books.

"Lorelai" Rory told him, "Figured it should be a tradition"

"It's a great tradition, Lorelai's are strong women" Jess nodded, "So what is next"

"Well" Rory walked out of the library and down the hall, "Down here is the office, but I don't really go in there much anymore" she admitted, it had been Logan's office, the library was her space, and the office was his, she didn't have it in her to take it over, just like she hadn't taken over the closet, or his side of the bathroom, everything was more or less as it had been when she had emptied out his space.

"Can we go into the office?" Jess laughed, not fully understanding why she didn't go into the space anymore.

"No" Rory laughed, "Sorry" she told him as she walked to the kitchen where Christian was sitting on a barstool holding the phone to his ear, "Are you still talking to Dad?" she asked him, holding her index finger up to Jess to indicate that she needed a moment.

"Yes" Christian nodded.

"Can I talk to him for a moment please?"

"Dad, mom wants to talk to you?" Christian muttered into the phone, "Ok, I'll call you on the weekend, you promised you'd come to my soccer game...yeah...here she is" Christian handed his mother the phone and hopped off the stool to run up to his room, "Bye Jess" he called.

"See you, buddy" Jess nodded as he watched Rory on the phone.

"Hey, Logan"

"Rory" she could hear him smiling.

"So, I don't know if Christian told you" she turned so she was facing away from Jess, "But uh...Jess came over, and I ... well, I introduced him to the kids"

"Christian mentioned it" Logan told her curtly.

"I wanted you to hear it from me" Rory told him, "I didn't know Riley was on the phone with you, I was going to call you, or text you, or something"

"It's fine Rory" Logan told her, "Have fun"

"Goodnight Logan"

xxxxxxxxx

"Logan, man, come on, we can't move backwards" Colin McCrae looked at his old friend as they sat in a bar.

"I'm not moving backwards" Logan told him, "I just...Rory introduced her boyfriend...Jess, to the kids"

"I'm sorry man" Colin shook his head, "That must be rough"

"I just...I hate the idea of that guy in my house" Logan admitted, "She's Rory"

"She's the love of your life" Colin nodded, "Steph is mine, I know how you feel"

"The only difference is that you are with Steph, Rory divorced my ass" Logan took a sip of his beer. "You have your kids, they are at home and probably annoying the shit out of you, but you can kiss them goodnight, and tuck them in, every single night. I can't"

"You deserved it" Colin told him honestly, "Seriously man, I feel for you, and I wish that your kids didn't have to go through this, and I wish that you didn't have to go through this, but you did this. You screwed it up, you stopped coming home, you stopped showing her that she mattered to you. Hell, you had Tiffany's and a florist on speed dial for when you fucked up. If you want to fix it, you need to show that you can be a part of your kids lives. Screw her life, you need to be there for your kids, because those, those are a lifetime commitment"

"You're right" Logan admitted, "I hate you for it, but you're right"

"So what are you going to do about it?" Colin asked as he tossed a $50 bill on the table to cover their tab.

"I'm going to be a great Dad"

xxxxxx

"Come on guys, Dad is going to be here any minute"

"But its Tuesday" Christian commented.

"I know" Rory laughed, "But we are all going out for dinner, and you go back to school in a couple of weeks, so things are going to be really busy, and Dad wants to see his two favourite people"

"Are you coming too?" Riley asked her.

"I am coming" Rory smiled, "It's going to be so much fun" she tickled her daughter gently.

"Where are we going?" Christian asked her.

"We are having dinner at Grandma Lorelai's inn" Rory told her, "Do you remember it?"

"Why are we going all the way over there?" Christian asked her.

"I just thought it would be nice" Rory lied, the truth was, she and Logan had discussed it, and they had decided they didn't want to go out anywhere that it was likely they would run into people who would assume that the 4 of them having dinner meant that Logan and Rory were back together. They knew that The Dragonfly would be a safe place for them to go together.

"Is Dad driving?" Christian asked.

"Yes he is, he bought a new car" Rory told him, "So why don't you look out the window and tell me when he gets here, I'm going to go grab my cellphone"

Christian sat in the dining room with his nose pressed against the window, leaving an imprint that he knew would upset his mother. He smiled as he saw the gate to the property swing open, and headlights coming towards him, "Mommy! Mommy! Riley! Dad is here" he shouted as he ran to the front door and out onto the steps.

"Hey man" Logan smiled as he got out of the car, to be taken out at the waist almost immediately, "I've missed you too Christian"

"Mommy says we're going to Grandma Lore's inn" Christian told him as he got into the back of Logan's car, "I like the new car, what kind is it?"

"It's a Porsche Cayenne" Logan told him, "Where are Mom and Ri?"

"We're right here" Rory called as she walked out holding Riley's hand. "You are right on time"

"I told you I would be" Logan smiled, trying to show her that he was making an effort, for the kids.

"Thanks" Rory smiled as she and Riley walked to the car.

"Hey princess" Logan lifted her up and gave her a kiss before placing her in her carseat, "You look beautiful"

"Thank you Daddy" she smiled, "Your car smells funny"

"It smells new" Christian told her, "Daddy bought a new car because Daddy has lots of money"

"I want lots of money" Riley stated simply.

"You have lots of money" Logan laughed as he buckled her in, "You just can't spend it" he laughed as he closed the door and turned to Rory, "You look nice" he told her and gave her a quick kiss on the cheek.

"Thanks" Rory smiled, she was wearing a pair of dark jeans with a dark grey long sleeved shirt on, nothing fancy, and she was carrying a black Hermes bag. "Do you remember the way?"

"Of course I remember the way" Logan laughed as he got into the drivers side while Rory got into the passengers side, "I've been going to that inn since I was 23 years old"

"Will Grandma be at dinner?" Christian asked.

"No" Rory laughed, "Grandma is having dinner with Grandpa and Aunty Gi tonight"

"Is Gigi back from Europe?" Logan asked her.

"Yes" Rory nodded.

"Did she love every minute of it?" Logan smiled, he had practically watched Georgia Hayden grow up, so when she needed somewhere to stay while she worked in Paris, he had offered her his families apartment in Paris for as long she needed.

"She is dying to go back" Rory told him, "She applied for a fulltime position"

"Well let me know if you want me to call and pull any strings" Logan told her.

"I think I can make the last name Huntzberger count all the same" Rory told him as they drove, the kids had turned on DVD's in the back of the car.

"Ah, I forgot" Logan laughed, "I guess I expected you to go back to Gilmore...after, well, after the divorce"

"I want to have the same last name as my kids" Rory shrugged, "And...well, I'm Rory Huntzberger, and I have been since I was 25, so its kind of who I think I am"

"Well, us Huntzberger's are lucky to have you" Logan laughed, as he turned off of the freeway and onto the back roads that would lead them to Stars Hollow.

"Mommy!" Riley shouted, breaking their comfortable conversation, "Christian hit me!"

"Christian don't hit your sister" Logan looked back at him through the rear view mirror, "If you don't behave you can't have dessert"

"Dad!" Christian protested.

"No buts" Logan told him, "Be nice to your sister please"

Rory smiled, moments like this were the worst. If she were to be honest with herself, when they were together like this, even though it hadn't really happened at all since the divorce, but when moments like this happened even when they were married, she questioned everything. She questioned leaving him, she questioned hurting her kids, her family, but she always tried to remember that these moments where he was present, and on time, they were few and far between. These moments were the exception, not the rule.

"Here we are" Logan smiled as he pulled down the gravel road, parking by the staff parking like he always did, "Hasn't changed a bit"

"Don't tell my mom that" Rory laughed as she got out of the car and opened the back door for Christian, "She'll tell you she just had the railings refinished, same colour and everything, but newer"

"Of course she did" Logan laughed as he unbuckled the carseat and lifted Riley into his arms, "You ready kiddo?"

As they walked into the inn, and through to the restaurant, Logan couldn't help but notice how much things hadn't changed in there. It was still the same, sure it was more updated, and now it was one of the top ranking inn's in all of the States, but the place hadn't changed.

"Oh my goodness" Sookie St. James squealed as she saw them, "Look at the 4 of you, all together. Isn't this nice, this is so nice"

"Hey Sook" Rory hugged her, "Just a dinner before the kids go to the Vineyard with their Aunt, and then back to school"

"Well I'm glad you came here" Sookie told them as they all sat down at a table, "Anyway, I'll go. You four have a great time, I have some awesome treats made up for tonight"

"Thank you" Rory smiled as she looked over the menu.

xxxxxx

"How's Jess?" Logan looked up at her as they were about half way finished their meal

"Jess is uh...fine?" Rory shrugged.

"I don't mean to make you feel uncomfortable" Logan told her, the kids were in the kitchen with Sookie, picking over the dessert options.

"It doesn't make me uncomfortable. I mean...its probably best, if we can try to be friends"

"Friends talk about their relationships" Logan stated simply, "Does he stay at the house?" he asked, not really sure if he wanted the answer or not.

"No" Rory shook her head, "I see him at his place, when the kids are with you. He has only come over that one time" she explained.

"How's the colouring?" Logan smirked, returning to the monicker they had given sex when Christian was young, "Sorry, but I had to" he laughed as the kids returned to the table.

"Logan" Rory laughed, a real laugh, straight from her gut, "The colouring is...well...sloppy" she laughed, she could not believe she was having this discussion with her ex husband, the father of her children, a man who she would probably always love. Maybe it was the wine, or maybe it was just that she was glad to have him as a friend, but in that mildly intoxicated moment, she felt fine discussing her sex life with her ex husband.

"How do you do sloppy colouring?" Riley looked at her parents as she returned to the table.

"Just messy" Rory shrugged, not breaking eye contact with Logan, "Not in the lines, and sometimes the crayons break" she explained to Riley.

"Jesus" Logan shook his head, he couldn't help but laugh, "Sounds like you need a new pack of crayons"

"Well, in terms of _colouring _I used to have a great pack of crayons, and even though they weren't reliable, and sometimes I would lose certain colours, or they wouldn't be where I was expecting to find them...they were great to colour with" Rory giggled.

"I didn't know you coloured, Mommy" Christian looked at his mother curiously.

"Not very often" Rory smiled as she felt her cellphone buzzing, she looked at the text message and then to the kids, "If you go to the lobby, you might find Aunty Georgia, and Grandma and Grandpa"

"Really?" Riley grinned, she knew seeing Grandpa Chris always meant presents.

"Yes" Rory smiled, "Now go on" she told them as they both ran to the front entrance, "Logan" she felt herself blushing.

"So the colouring isn't what you hoped it would be" he couldn't hide the playful grin on his face.

"Like I said, I had over a decade of _amazing _colouring. That was a department you never fell short in"

"Thank you...I think" Logan smiled as Rory took another long sip of wine.

"So what about you, have you been doing any colouring?" Rory was clearly getting a bit more brave the more wine she drank.

"No colouring for me since..." Logan thought back, he didn't know if he should tell her the truth, or fudge a number that would make him sound like the playboy she thought he was. "Not since us"

Rory nearly spat out her drink, Logan always had someone on his arm at society parties, she had assumed he had moved on, at least physically with these women, "Why?"

"I don't know" Logan shrugged, "Never felt right"

"Hey there kids" Lorelai smiled as she walked into the dining room, her two grandchildren in tow, "The kids and I were just talking" she began before noticing the tension between her daughter and former son in law.

"Grandma says we can have a sleepover because we haven't had a sleepover here in sooooooooooo long" Riley squealed, "Please please please please please please please please please MOMMY!"

"Alright" Rory laughed, "You can have a sleepover with Grandma" before she looked towards her mother, "But you have to bring them back to Hartford tomorrow"

"That I can do sweets" Lorelai smiled as she kissed Rory's cheek, "Wine drunk?" she whispered.

"A little bit" Rory laughed, "Come on guys, give Mom and Dad a hug"

"Hey Logan" Lorelai smiled as she kissed his cheek as well, "You driving her home?"

"I've just been nursing club soda, so yes, I will be the driver" Logan promised as he watched his kids say goodbye to their mother, "Alright, be good for Grandma" Logan kissed Riley on the head and hugged Christian.

"Bye" both of the kids smiled at their parents in unison.

"You going to finish that wine, and then we can go?" Logan suggested.

"Sounds good" Rory smiled as she took another long sip.

"I'm going to go take care of the bill" Logan told her as he stood up, he couldn't decide if he had pushed the conversation too far, did he really want to know about her sex life? Well in this case, he did, he liked knowing that Jess didn't live up to the hype, he liked knowing that she missed him, at least in one regard. He hated that he had told her the truth, that he hadn't been with anyone since they were together, sometimes he hated admitting it to himself. The truth was, he never really felt closure with their marriage, he didn't know what he would have said if he had the chance to try to talk her out of it, but he would have at least liked the opportunity. "Hey, what's the total?" he smiled at the waiter as he handed him his Black Amex.

"$172.87" the waiter told him.

"Actually" Logan changed his mind and took the credit card back, instead handing him a pile of bills, "Keep the change" he smiled as the waiter counted out three $100 bills. "Alright Ace, you ready to head home?"

"I guess" Rory sighed as she stood up from the table, immediately feeling a little bit unstable on her feet.

"I've got you" he promised as he put his hand on her back to steady her.

They walked in relative silence to the car, and even the first portion of the ride home was silent until Rory looked at him with her big, blue eyes, "We have great kids" she stated simply.

"They're only great because you're their mom" Logan told her, not taking his eyes off of the road in front of him.

"Give yourself credit" Rory told him honestly, "You weren't the best husband, but they think you're superman"

"Do they like Jess?" Logan swallowed the lump in his throat.

"They've only met him once. Riley was...well, sweet, but didn't really take a liking to him, and Christian was cordial" Rory told him, "I'm sure that makes you happy"

"I want you to be happy, Ace" Logan told her honestly, "And I want our kids to be happy"

"So you really haven't had sex since we split up?" Rory asked him suddenly.

"Do you really need to rub it in?" Logan rolled his eyes.

"Sorry" Rory giggled, "If it makes you feel any better, sex with Jess is..."

"You already said" Logan smirked, "Didn't live up to the expectations"

xxxxx

"Do you want to come in for a drink?" Rory asked as they turned onto her street, approaching the gate to the house, "The code is the same" she told him.

"Looks like you have company" Logan nodded as he saw a car sitting in the driveway and a shadowy figure on the porch, "Are you expecting him?"

"No" Rory shook her head, "But I don't think I told him the 4 of us were going to dinner" she admitted as Logan punched in the code to open the gate, slightly annoyed at the prospect that Jess had access to that number. At least he clearly didn't have access to the house itself.

"Sorry" Logan mumbled, he wasn't entirely sure why he was apologizing as he drove up the long driveway to the house, as he came to a stop he saw Jess stand up and look to see who was approaching.

"Thank you, Logan" Rory gave him a half smile, "Honor is picking the kids up at 4 tomorrow, so if you want to stop by and say goodbye to them..."

"I think we said our goodbyes already" Logan told her, "Thanks though. You...have fun, good luck with the colouring" he told her, giving her the same half smile that she had given to him.


	4. Chapter 4

A/N: Happy New Year! Thank you all very much for the reviews, they make me so happy, and keep me writing. In this chapter we start to see where Rory and Logan's relationship is heading, for now at least. And I love doing this to Jess. It's hillarious - is that wrong of me? Anyway, in the next few chapters we will see some progress, and some back tracking, and some progress. Please please please keep reviewing! I love the reviews!

**Chapter 4:**

"Mommy" Riley looked up at her mother after her sleepover at Lorelai's.

"What's up beautiful?" Rory smiled as she folded some of the laundry she had done after Jess had left the previous evening.

"Can Daddy take me to school on my first day?" she asked, referring to the private pre-school she would soon be attending.

"I think you can call Daddy and ask" Rory suggested.

"You call" Riley pouted.

"No sweetie" Rory shook her head, "When Daddy calls later to say goodnight, you can ask"

"I want you to ask" Riley crossed her arms in front of her chest.

"Honey you can talk to Daddy" Rory told her.

"Daddy has a date today" Riley shrugged, "And by the time Daddy calls Aunty Honor will have taken me"

xxxxxxxxx

The kids had gone to Martha's Vineyard for a week with Honor, Josh and their two kids. Mitchum and Shira were going to meet up with them for the weekend, and Logan had decided to make his way to the Hampton's to search for a house. He wanted somewhere for the kids to go, somewhere that he, or Rory could take them to get away from all of it.

As he sat in his seat in the empty private plane, it gave him far too much time to ponder all of the poor choices he had made that got him to where he was now.

_"You will read the statement, son" Mitchum told him firmly, "This isn't what any of us wanted, but she has filed for divorce, and you need to be on top of this. You just go, stand in front of the cameras and read the statement. Tell the world how you are still deeply devoted to being the best parents that you can be, and that you still have a world of respect for one and other"_

_"Why do I need to make a god damned public statement?" Logan glared at his father from the place he was sitting at his desk._

_"Because like it or not son, we are public figures. If you do not report on this, if Huntzberger doesn't report on this, someone else will, and it will become a story about cheating, and hate, and lies. As far as you have told me none of that is true, yes this is unfortunate son, and I wish I didn't have to have this conversation with you, but stay on top of it"_

_"So I just need to go down to the conference room, and the press is waiting?" Logan sighed, adjusting his tie._

_"Yes" Mitchum nodded, "You're still wearing your ring" he noticed._

_"Dad, I screwed up" Logan told him honestly, "I didn't want this. I still don't want my marriage to be over. I'm not ready to take it off yet"_

_"Then don't take it off. If anyone asks, its a symbol, to your children" Mitchum suggested, "We'll get through this"_

_"Well, you better watch" Logan smirked as he left his office and headed to the elevator, going down 14 floors to the room where all Huntzberger press conferences were held. Usually they had to do with mergers, and acquisitions, but this time, he was announcing to the world that he had failed, his marriage had failed._

_"Right over here, Mr. Huntzberger" one of the company lawyers stood up, making way for Logan to stand at the podium in front of a group of 50 or so reporters, many of them from news outlets that were at least partially owned by Huntzberger._

_"Thank you all for coming, there will be no questions, so please, just listen" Logan began, "I wish I were here under different circumstances, but after a great of soul searching, and consideration, my wife, Rory Huntzberger and I have made the difficult decision to end our marriage. We hope that you can respect not only our own privacy, but the privacy of our children during this difficult time, it is not a decision we came to lightly. However we want what makes each of us happy, and at this time, we are making a decision that is best for us. Rory will remain a part of Huntzberger as she is a valuable asset to the company. Thank you all for your time, and I appreciate your discretion when it comes to my privacy, and the privacy of my family" and with that he quickly left the room, he could hear people talking as he left the room, people asking questions. "That was awful" Logan looked at the poor intern who had been given the responsibility of following him around that particular day._

_"Yes, sir" the intern nodded._

_"You don't have to say sir, you can call me Logan. Today we can wallow and just be guys. Please?" Logan looked at him, his eyes pleading, today was likely the worst day of his life, he only assumed however that it could likely get worse._

He was surprised when his cellphone vibrated in his pocket, bringing him out of his thoughts.

**_Ri said you had a date tonight, can you please be sure to call her, she wants to talk to you. - Rory_**

He quickly grabbed his cellphone and hammered out a quick text.

**_No date. Will call Ri tonight before bed as long as everything goes to plan. Gone to the Hampton's to try to find a place for the kids, let me know if there is anything specific you want - Logan_**

All he wanted to do was make sure that he picked a place that was comfortable for all of them to go to, he wanted to know that Rory would feel comfortable going there, that even if they weren't a couple anymore, this could still be a family home.

xxxxxx

"How was your date with your ex?" Jess looked at her from across the table at Luke's.

"It wasn't a date" Rory rolled her eyes, "I had dinner with my kids, and their father"

"Well you two seemed awful cozy when he dropped you off" Jess glared at her.

"Jess" Rory sighed, "Don't make a big deal out of this. Wouldn't you have liked it when you were younger if your parents had been able to get along? That is all we want for our kids, to be able to sit together in a room, and not be at each others throats"

"I don't know Rory, doesn't it all just seem a little bit too convenient?" Jess asked her.

"Jess, I don't know if you are just being an oversized child, or if you are just trying to piss me off" she looked at him, "My kids need their father, and in order to give my kids the best life they could possibly have, which is all any parent could ever want for their kid, we need to be able to coexist. I think maybe we should take some time apart. If there comes a point where you can focus on someone other than you, maybe we can try this again, but until then, don't call"

And with that she was gone, she walked out of Luke's, not even taking a moment to look back. She hopped into her Range Rover and checked her messages before she drove back to Hartford.

**_Logan that is really great, I think its important that the kids have that. Send me pics of anything you like? I'm just laying low in Hartford._**

xxxxxxx

Logan smiled as he got off the plane and into the waiting car. He wasn't sure exactly why he was happy, but he couldn't help but think that maybe this was something he and Rory could do together. He wanted this house to be for their kids, he wanted them to feel like it was their home, regardless of which parent was with them, and so while he sat in traffic to leave the airport.

**_Call my dad, hop onto the plane and come meet me. We can choose it together, its for them, not me_**

He put his phone back into his pocket and plugged in his headphones, he needed some time to regroup. He was glad that he and Rory were finally able to talk and get along together, if only for the sake of his kids. He had hated that they weren't even able to go to the school at the same time, but it was obviously time for Logan to let it go. They had divorced, he wished they hadn't, but it was the situation he was in, and all he could do was try to make it better.

Logan hated being stuck in traffic, it just felt like such a waste of time, and driving into the Hampton's was enough to stress anyone out, especially anyone who wasn't a New Yorker. He made a mental note that in the future he would have a helicopter meet him and he would take that into the Hampton's, before he felt the all too familiar buzz of his cell phone receiving a text message.

**_Meet you in a couple of hours. Your dad has a chopper taking me to the Hampton's, he says traffic is bad - Rory_**

xxxxxxx

There was something about waiting to meet his ex wife to go shopping for a vacation home that made him feel like he was in the twilight zone. But as he waited in front of the first home, it was huge, a 6 car garage, water front, at least 8 bedrooms, there was something hillarious about all of it. He couldn't want for the real estate agent's reaction.

"Hey, you're here" he smiled as she pulled up and stepped out of the car.

"I told you I would be" Rory shrugged, "So this is the first one? Seems big...and we live in a pretty big house"

"Well, the idea would be that we keep this forever" Logan shrugged, "Maybe you'll have more kids one day, hell, maybe I'll have more kids one day" he told her as they walked to the front door and knocked on it loudly.

"Mr Huntzberger, hello" the realtor answered the door, Rory couldn't help but notice she was pretty, and wearing an incredibly short skirt, she clearly looked surprised that more than just Logan was in front of her, "Mrs Huntzberger" she smiled.

"Please, call me Logan" Rory extended his hand, "This is Rory"

"Well come on in, this is a beautiful place, its just come onto the market"

"What is the asking price?" Rory asked, knowing she didn't want the answer. Sure over the years she had become more accustom to the ridiculous spending, but she would never get used to dropping a few million dollars on anything.

"$39.5 million" the realtor smiled, "But let me tell you it is worth every penny. The property sits on 2.3 acres and has the most amazing ocean views, its a water front property, pool, dock slip, about 15,000 square feet, but I'll let you two take a look around"

"Why don't you go scope out the kids rooms?" Logan suggested to Rory.

"Oh you have children?" the real estate agent smiled, "There are a lot of families around here"

"We aren't married" Rory told her, "Divorced, this is just a place for the kids to go, for us to take them" she wasn't sure why she had felt compelled to tell the realtor that she and Logan weren't married, maybe it was so that there would be no confusion, maybe it was just to remind herself, all she knew was that she hated saying it.

"Oh" the realtor smiled, "So you're just looking for a place that your kids can come...long weekends... things like that?"

"Pretty much" Logan shrugged, he had to admit, it stung having Rory remind him that they weren't married, but at least they were peacefully coexisting in the same building. They had come a long way.

As the realtor showed them to different houses, they realized quickly that the first was likely the best, it was also the most expensive. The house allowed two master suites which would be handy if they were ever all there at once, and it gave the most room to grow, for other family members to visit, for Gigi to be able to visit, that was the house they needed.

"Logan" Rory looked at him as he was preparing to sign the papers over dinner in New York City, "That is a lot of money to spend"

"I've been thinking about it for a while" he shrugged as he prepared to sign the offer, "You can't take money with you, Ror, I want our kids to enjoy their lives"

"I know you do" Rory nodded. "What happened with the date?"

"Maybe I wasn't a good husband, or a good father, but the least I can do is give them the best of everything" Logan smiled at her, genuinely from ear to ear, "There was no date, I had a meeting with the realtor, who you met with me...there was no date"

"Logan, I seriously don't ever want to tell you again that you are in fact a fantastic father" Rory told him honestly, satisfied with his response regarding the date, "They love you, they are happy, they are safe, what more could anyone want for their kids?"

"Be married to their mom?" Logan smirked, "I'm just going to take this to the concierge to fax and then I'll be back. Can you order me another scotch?" he asked her as he stood up from the table.

"Alright" Rory smiled as she watched him go, ordering them both another cocktail. She was happy that they were getting along, spending time together, it was especially great for the kids, they were happy that they didn't have to not say anything about their parent to each other, instead they could just speak openly without fear of any particular reaction.

"Back" Logan smiled, noticing the drink at his seat, "Soon I will be the proud new owner of a $40 million estate..."

"Please tell me you didn't offer that" Rory rolled her eyes. Sometimes she couldn't even fathom how much money the Huntzberger's had.

"I offered $27.5" Logan told her, "You trying to get me drunk?"

"A little bit" Rory laughed, "It's not often that we both get to act like grown ups. No kids"

"I should probably head back to my apartment. Are you staying here?" Logan asked her as he swallowed his drink in one sip.

"I want to show you something upstairs, I have to send you a few things" Rory told him, "Come up to my room?" she suggested as Logan tossed some cash on the table.

"What are you showing me?" he asked her.

"Pictures, things you've missed" Rory shrugged, "Riley had the cutest dance recital imaginable"

"Well then I will have to see it" Logan nodded, following her towards the elevators, for a moment he even protectively put his arm on her back. She looked amazing, which wasn't all that surprising. One thing that had been true for as long as they had been married, and especially more so since they separated, she always looked perfect. She was wearing a cream coloured Gucci crewneck dress with a pair of gold coloured sandals.

"It's good, that we can do this now, I mean...talk, relax, hang out, for the kids" Rory smiled as she let him lead her into the elevator. And there she was again, feeling full of liquid courage, she could see him staring at her, she knew he appreciated the dress she had painstakingly chosen after they had selected the the house. "Logan" she smiled at him as they both stood on opposite sides of the empty elevators.

"Ace" he gave her a devilish grin.

It was that stupid grin, that smirk that played on his lips the same way it had when he was 24 years old. She couldn't not love that smirk. And then, the roles were reversed, in a simple step she closed the gap between them and brought her lips to his, putting her arms around his neck to pull herself closer to him as she used her tongue to push for access into his mouth. She needed to be close to him.

Logan was surprised, not entirely surprised because he had been hoping since they divorced that they would be able to do this again, but as his hands found the small of her back and pulled her closer to him, it was like he needed to kiss her, the same way he needed to breathe. He barely even noticed the elevator door ding open. "Rory" he whispered as he trailed kisses down her neck, moving them in a delicate dance so that his back was holding the door open.

"No" Rory shook her head as she felt him lift her off the ground.

"I don't know where your room is" he laughed as he pulled away from her. "Trust me, we aren't stopping this time"

"Come on" Rory grabbed his arm, practically dragging him to her suite as she pulled the key out of...Logan grinned, where had she pulled that key out of?

"Ace" Logan breathed before he brought his lips down on hers once more, "If you want to stop, say stop"

"Don't. Stop" she kissed him once more, pulling playfully at his bottom lip with her teeth.

"Whatever you say" Logan kissed her again, gently, savouring the moment like he should have all those years ago, he lifted her up gently and sat her on the end table that was standing beside the door, "We were always good at this" he kissed her neck gently as Rory slipped her shoes off her feet and began to undo the buttons of his shirt.

"I've missed this" Rory admitted as she tipped her head back and wrapped her legs around his waist, hiking her skirt up in the process.

"Too much talking" Logan told her as he covered her mouth with his and lifted her from the table, fumbling back towards the bed as she pushed the shirt off of his shoulders.

xxxxxxxxx

The night was a blur of kisses and longing sighs as they held each other tightly.

"Ace" Logan whispered as he traced circles on her bare shoulder blade

"Don't" Rory sighed as he kissed the spot where he had just been drawing the circles.

"Don't what?" Logan smirked as he kissed his way up to the base of her neck.

"Let's not talk about it yet" Rory told him as she rotated to face him, kissing him sweetly on the lips as she snuggled herself into his chest, "Talking about it makes it real"

"It was very real" Logan laughed, "But we can keep having fun"

"We should be grown ups" Rory propped herself up on her elbows, resting her chin in her hands.

"You want to talk about it?" Logan sighed, he knew they had to.

"I just slept with my ex husband"

"And I just slept with my ex wife" Logan nodded, "And it was good. You told me Jess is lacking in the sexpertise department"

"Jess and I broke up" Rory told him, "Well" she began after a long pause, "We're breaking up"

"Why don't we just figure out how to co exist, Ror" Logan sighed, he wanted more, but he knew that for now, maybe more was just physical. No one knew, it was just between them.

"You want to sleep together?" Rory almost laughed, "You want me to be your mistress"

"You have a boyfriend" Logan winked, "So I guess that makes me your mistress"

"Logan" Rory began before he silenced her with a kiss.

"We have a need. My life is too high profile to date random girls, and you don't want to bring strangers around the kids. This is the perfect match Rory" he hated making it sound so cold and calculated, but this was the only way he knew how to get close to her without hurting her.

"So just sex then" Rory smiled seductively.

"And you're not seeing Jess?"

"Jess and I had a fight this morning" Rory shrugged.

"About what?" Logan looked at her curiously, "I mean in the spirit of friendship, and full disclosure"

"You" Rory told him, "He was upset that we went to dinner with the kids, and he is possessive. That is a quality you are familiar with"

"I punched one guy" Logan rolled his eyes.

"Logan. You punched someone, at a party, in PARIS" Rory couldn't contain her laughter as she thought back to the time shortly after they were married.

_Logan watched. He was on his anniversary trip with Rory, it was their first anniversary, and his dad had suckered them into going to some stupid ball for Huntzberger, to represent the company. _

_Normally Logan didn't mind these ridiculous parties, but at least Stateside the men knew not to hit on Mrs. Logan Huntzberger._

_"Having fun" Logan smiled._

_"Oh, Logan, hey" Rory's smile grew, "This is Michael, he's actually from California, but he has lived in Spain for years, his family sent him to this too"_

_"Great" Logan nodded, "Nice to meet you, Logan Huntzberger"_

_"You as well" the man nodded before turning his attention back to Rory, putting his hand on her shoulder to tell her something, and then in a nonchalant manner, almost as though it is what he was supposed to be doing, he lowered his hand so it hovered right over her butt._

_"Seriously?" Logan glared at him._

_"What is the problem?" _

_And with that, Logan had laid a strong right hook on him, managing not to spill his drink in the process. Rory was mortified, later Mitchum would try to kill him, but Logan always stood by what he had done._

"So Jess is protective" Logan smirked, "Well, he'll never need to know"

"Do you hear that?" Rory could hear what sounded like a phone vibrating somewhere in the room.

"Yep" Logan rolled off of the bed and began to search, he found the phone near the door and took a quick glance at the screen before walking it back to Rory, "Speak of the devil"

"Hello?" Rory answered the phone as she smiled at Logan, waving her hand for him to come back to bed. "I'm in New York, I had some business to attend to" Rory laughed as Logan kissed her shoulder gently, "Look, Jess, I told you yesterday that if you can't start acting like an adult, we can't do this. We aren't kids anymore. I see my ex husband, he is the father of my children, get over it" Rory rolled her eyes and leaned back on the bed, smiling as Logan trailed his kisses over her stomach, "The kids are out of town for the week...ok...fine. Goodbye" she told him as she ended the call, "You are distracting" she smirked.

"Me? Distracting? Your phone is what interrupted us" Logan kissed her gently on the lips, "I should go"

"Do you have work or something?" Rory asked him.

"No" he admitted, "But this is supposed to just be sex" Logan kissed her, "And if I stay, we will be having a date, and if we have a date, I won't be able to walk away"

The truth strung, Rory knew he was right, they couldn't move backwards, they had to redefine the relationship, and if having casual sex was a possibility, both of them were okay with that, but the things that had fundamentally torn them apart still existed.


	5. Chapter 5

A/N: I still don't own anything. Unfortunately, I do want to warn all of the readers that i will still be updating 1-2 times per week, and sometimes more often, but the frequency might go down, stupid work! read and review! please! reviews make me want to write!

**Chapter 5**

"Why are you so giggly?" Paris asked as they sat in the stands of the pool, watching their kids at swimming lessons.

"I'm not" Rory crossed her arms in front of her, "You're just extra paranoid Paris"

"Rory" Paris stared at her, "What is going on? Are you seeing someone new? Did you and Jess finally break up?"

"No" Rory shook her head, "Jess and I are still...Jess and I" she shrugged, not even knowing what to label the relationship, "I'm just happy. My kids are happy, I'm happy"

"So this is all about your kids? The staring at your phone, the perma-smile, that's all about Riley and Christian?" Paris rolled her eyes.

"Yes"

"If you say so" Paris agreed to drop the subject, at least temporarily.

It had been 3 months, she was still seeing Jess, and part of her felt bad that she was sleeping with Logan, but she always thought of him as hers, they were married, they had children, she loved him. She knew she didn't love Jess, but she also didn't want to hurt him, and so she stayed.

"What are you and Doyle doing for Thanksgiving?" Rory asked as the kids slowly got out of the pool.

"I think just dinner with the kids" Paris shrugged.

"Do you want to come have dinner at our place? My parents are going to California" Rory explained, "And Grandma and Grandpa are still on their world cruise or something"

"That would be good, just you and the kids?" Paris asked her with a wicked grin.

"Logan will be there, and I think I might invite Jess" Rory shrugged, shocking even herself, she just didn't want to have to listen to Paris yammer on about how she and Logan should 'make it work', they were making it work...but no one needed to know that.

"You're inviting your boyfriend, to dinner with your kids, and your ex husband?" Paris actually left out a hearty laugh, "That will be fun"

"We're trying to make it work" Rory shrugged, "Come on, lets go get the kids"

xxxxxxxxx

"So we have dinner on Thursday" Rory told him as he balanced Riley on his hip, the two were going to see The Lion King.

"Alright" Logan nodded, "I was thinking, I'm actually seeing someone..."

"Oh" Rory nodded, taken aback slightly by his statement. Their meetings were usually fairly raw and carnal, with little small talk and a great deal of passion pent up between them. "Well Jess is going to come, so if you want to bring her" she countered quickly.

"Alright, so I'll bring Sophie, you bring Jess" Logan shifted awkwardly before turning his attention to Riley, "Alright babe, you ready to go?"

"I want to see Simba!" Riley grinned, "Love you Mommy"

"Love you too sweetheart, be good for Dad"

"Bye Ror" Logan kissed her cheek gently, "I'll have her home in the morning, we're going to stay in the City"

"Is that where you met her?" Rory asked quietly as he was almost at the door.

"Yeah" Logan nodded, "It is. She hasn't been around them, don't worry"

"Thanks" Rory smiled, she was terrified by the idea of another woman around her kids, even though Jess had seen them a handful of times.

"Give Christian a kiss for me, please" Logan smiled before he shut the door.

xxxxxxx

"Seriously" Rory muttered as she stared at her closet, "So many outfits, but no, I can't find one" she sighed as she flipped through all of the different choices in front of her, she needed to find something perfect. After all, in 2 short hours she would be meeting her ex husband/current sex buddy's new girlfriend.

"Mom?" Riley poked her head into the closet.

"Yes beautiful?" Rory smiled.

"Do you and Daddy promise not to fight?" Riley was biting her finger nails as she asked the question.

"Why would we fight?" Rory asked her, "Dad and I will be happy, we're with you"

"Last time we had turkey together" Riley explained, "You fought" even though she had no memory of the fight, Christian had mentioned his concern and it had her terrified, the last time Rory and Logan had _enjoyed _a Thanksgiving dinner together was long before their marriage had ended.

"Honey, Daddy and I are fine" Rory promised, "Now go downstairs and ask Alice to get you a snack, ok?"

"Thanks, Mommy" Riley nodded before disappearing from the room, leaving Rory to once again deal with the dilemma of what she was going to wear.

xxxxxx

"Rory you didn't have to get so dressed up for us" Paris smirked as she hugged her friend and her children immediately ran off to find Christian and Riley, after yelling a quick, _Hi Aunty Ror_ on their way in.

"It's a holiday Paris" Rory sighed as she hugged Doyle, "Come on in, Logan and his girlfriend, Sophie, will be here soon. Jess is just in the kitchen"

"Wonderful" Paris grinned, "Seriously though, great dress"

"Nordstrom" Rory told her, "I thought it was fun, I went and bought a million dresses to prep for the Christmas season"

"Well you do have a busy Christmas schedule" Paris remarked, "What are the plans after this very mature party you are hosting tonight with your ex and his girlfriend"

"We haven't talked about it yet" Rory shrugged, "Last year the kids spent Christmas Eve with Logan, opened presents and were here by noon to do it all over again"

"Well hopefully you two can work something else out. Will Jess be visiting any of his family?" Paris asked as she saw Jess saunter into the living room, "Glad you got dressed up" she mumbled as she noticed he was simply wearing jeans and a button down shirt. Just about everyone who attended a holiday party at the Huntzberger's, pre, or post divorce, knew that it was always a semi formal event, "How are you Jess?"

"Great" Jess nodded, "Hi, I'm Jess" he extended his hand to Doyle, "Nice to meet you"

"Doyle" he nodded, "I'm Paris' husband"

"Paris got a husband?" Jess nodded, clearly a little bit shocked.

"Jess" Rory gave him a look, "Here, what can I get everyone to drink?"

"I'll have a vodka, on the rocks. None of that Smirnoff crap though" Paris told Rory in typical Paris fashion, "Doyle is driving tonight because I agreed to drive home from his parents house on Saturday"

"You know you could both drink, and just crash here" Rory rolled her eyes, "But sure, Doyle, what can I get for you?"

"I'll have a scotch please" Doyle smiled as he sat down, "Whatever you have, I'm sure Logan left a great collection"

"Of course I did" Logan smirked as he opened walked into the living room of his former house. "Happy Thanksgiving everyone" he smiled as a leggy blonde walked in behind him.

"Logan" Rory plastered a fake smile on her face, "Happy Thanksgiving" she walked over and gave him a hug, "You must be Sophie, I'm Rory, Logan's ex wife"

"Nice to meet you" Sophie smiled as introductions were made to the rest of the adults in the room.

"Where are the kids, Ace?" Logan asked as Sophie sat down on one of the 3 couches in the room. Logan remembered decorating that room, it had been a long process.

_"If we have three couches, and then two big arm chairs" Rory told him as they stared at the empty space, the house was part way through construction, the exterior was complete but the flooring and drywall still needed to go in, and all of the fixtures were being imported from every corner of the earth, "Then it will be nice, for couples, for other people, it will be a nice room to just sit in and enjoy"_

_"Three couches seems like a lot" Logan told her, wrapping his arms around her and kissing her cheek, "But if you want three couches, call the decorator and tell her its three couches"_

_"Thank you" Rory smirked, "You aren't going to fight for anything in this house, are you?"_

_"Just my office and the bar in the basement, those are my spaces, other than that...this is your house Ace"_

"In the basement" Rory told him, "Playing with Ashley, Brooklyn and Kyla" she stated, referring to Paris' girls.

"Alrighty, well I'll be back. You good babe?" he asked, referring to Sophie.

"I'm great" Sophie smiled as she returned to her conversation with Doyle.

xxxxxxx

"Alright Ri" Logan smiled as he held his daughter's hand, Christian and the other 3 girls following closely behind them, "I want you, and your brother to meet someone"

"Ok" Riley nodded, Christian had a more unimpressed look on his face as they approached the living room.

"Soph, come here" Logan called her over, she gracefully put her drink down and walked over to the entrance to the room. Logan wouldn't force the kids to spend time with the adults, but he did want them to meet, "These are my kids, Christian, and Lorelai...we call Lorelai Riley" he explained, "Riley, Christian this is Sophie"

"It's so nice to meet you" Sophie smiled, "I just love your blonde hair" she told Riley, "And Christian" she looked at him, "You are probably so smart"

"I'm like my Mommy" Christian told her with a half smile, "I like to read"

"I love to read" Sophie smiled, "It was really great to meet you both"

"Can we go play now?" Riley asked.

"Yes honey" Logan laughed, "Thank you for coming up"

"Well I'm going to go check on dinner" Rory stood up and brushed past Logan and Sophie while the kids went back downstairs.

"Do you need a hand?" Logan asked, sensing her frustration.

"I'm ok" Rory shook her head as she disappeared into the kitchen.

"Can I get anyone another drink?" Logan asked as he returned his attention to the rest of the guests.

"I can get drinks" Jess stood up.

"Ready for a pissing match" Paris whispered into Doyle's ear.

"It's alright" Logan smiled as he poured a cocktail for Sophie, "Paris? Doyle?"

"I said I've got it" Jess rolled his eyes.

"Look, man, cool it" Logan sighed as he handed Paris another vodka and another scotch for Doyle.

"I'm going to check on something" Logan nodded to Sophie, "I'll be right back"

"Alright sweetie" Sophie smiled.

Logan smiled as he walked to the kitchen, he knew Rory would have gotten a chef to cook the meal, she never liked cooking these giant spectacles.

"Need a hand?" he asked her as she stood out on the deck looking at the pool which was covered for the season, the patio furniture all put away.

"You caught me" Rory laughed as she turned to face him holding her glass of wine.

"You look beautiful" Logan told her as he approached her and looked out on the backyard, "It's so different in the winter"

"So dead" Rory laughed as she walked to the other side of the deck, the side that wasn't visible from the kitchen.

"Yes" Logan laughed, "Aren't you freezing?"

"She seems nice" Rory mused.

"Sophie?"

"Who else, Logan?" Rory was visibly frustrated.

"Rory you knew she was coming, you brought Jess" Logan walked towards her, putting one hand on either side of where she was standing, "If I knew" Logan kissed her neck, "That having a family Thanksgiving" he smirked as he continued kissing her, "Was an option, we would be" he looked at her, "But it's not. So what are we going to do to get through this meal?"

"I miss you" Rory looked at the ground to her left.

"I miss you too Ace" Logan put his hand on her cheek, "This isn't easy, but its what you wanted. Isn't this what you wanted?"

"No!" Rory glared at him, "This" she gave him a quick but passionate kiss, "This is the last thing that I want, I want my family back. I don't want to do this stupid dance anymore"

"Rory" Logan sighed.

"No, don't Rory me! We don't do casual, we couldn't do casual all those years again, why would we think we could do it now"

"So marry me. Dump Jess, I'll dump Sophie, marry me. Let's be a family again" Logan threw his hands into the air, he knew that push come to shove she wouldn't do it so they were best off keeping things as they were, but the fact of the matter was, Rory needed to feel like she was making this decision. He knew that such a huge step would lead to her retreating back to the way they were.

"Logan there were things in our marriage, they were broken, and we can't just pretend those didn't exist" Rory told him.

"We will talk about this later" Logan promised her, he was clearly annoyed, and feeling slightly rejected even though it was what he knew was going to happen, and he knew it was right, "But for right now, we need to go inside and have Thanksgiving, with our kids and our respective mates"

"Let's just keep things like they were" Rory sighed, "Sophie makes you happy, so...keep seeing Sophie, and I'll keep seeing Jess"

"You want to keep seeing him?"

"We can't change things so soon Logan, we're good in bed, and we're good parents...let's just go inside, leave it as it is for now"

xxxxxx

"That was nice" Sophie smiled as Logan dropped her off at his house. She needed to drive back to New York for her own Thanksgiving parties the following day.

"It was" Logan nodded, "Ri seemed to like you...Christian, he's a man of few words"

"They seem to be equal parts you, and equal parts your ex" Sophie told him as they stepped out of the car.

"I like to think they're all her" Logan laughed, "Are you coming in?"

"Do you want me to come in?" Sophie asked, they had only been on a few dates, which is why Logan hadn't introduced her as his girlfriend.

"If you want to" Logan smirked, "I mean its Thanksgiving, are you going to spend it alone?"

"I guess not" Sophie smiled as they walked towards the house, "It's a beautiful house"

"Not as beautiful as the old one" Logan admitted, immediately wishing he hadn't said it, "I mean...I hand picked everything in that house, I kind of picked this place out of necessity"

"What happened?" Sophie asked, "I mean if you don't mind me asking"

"I was a bad husband" Logan told her, "Simply put, I didn't make my family a priority"

"So there was no catalyst?" Sophie probed, "No big thing"

"Let's not talk about it" Logan told her, immediately noticing that she was pushing for more information that the average girl would want after a few dates. "Can I get you a drink? Maybe just one and then I'll probably just call it a night"

He had realized at that moment that Sophie was one of two things. She was either a reporter, or she was a social climber. Neither of these were acceptable, the only people he could have in his life were those who could be trusted, and after that line of questioning, he knew she couldn't.

xxxxxxx

_We've gone back to nannies doing our bidding? Drop the gifts off whenever_

Rory texted him quickly, they had hit a few stumbling blocks since Thanksgiving, sure they were still sleeping together, but they weren't talking, there was no semblance of a relationship between them.

_Busy with work. Sorry. Dinner with the kids on Friday? Maybe a family movie and then some dessert?_

Rory smiled when she almost immediately received a response, she hated the way her stomach did back flips for him, even when she willed herself not to, even when she tried to convince herself that she could be happy with Jess. The truth was, she knew she could only be happy with Logan.

_I'll order pizza. 7?_

She responded before glancing at her watch, the Cartier watch that Logan had given her the first time he missed their anniversary. Looking at the watch she realized that the kids would be home from school in a couple of hours and she had to try to get some Christmas shopping done. She quickly grabbed her purse from the library and walked out to one of her 3 cars. She always felt ridiculous having so many cars, but Logan at some point had convinced her that there was a need for all of them. An SUV, her Range Rover for winter driving, her massive 7 series BMW for driving the kids around then lastly, he had purchased her a Mercedes convertible just before they had divorced, something to have fun in was how he had described it to her.

_Perfect. I still have more gifts to drop off for the gifts, and a bunch more shopping to do. Are we both being Santa this year?_

Logan had responded while she drove to the mall. This certainly was the most conversation they had taken part in recently, and there they were, just a couple of weeks before Christmas, both of them likely fumbling over what to buy the kids. They had agreed that all presents were to be stored in the pool/guest house that was at Rory's, the kids were never allowed in there, and it allowed for adequate space to wrap and compare, make sure the kids were getting an even amount of things to open, and also confirm that absolutely no duplicates existed. Especially not duplicates from Santa.

_Figure'd we would compare sometime next week. See what we need. I'm out now. Are we doing gifts?_

Before she had a chance to second guess her suggestion she had sent the message. The message she was sending to her lover, her ex husband, the man she was cheating on her current boyfriend with. What had made her think of this was the impeccably dressed mannequin she had walked past on her way to Neiman Marcus kids, where she would find some clothes to give the kids, even though she knew full well that her kids hated receiving clothing as gifts.

_Sure_

His response was simple, clear, had he already gotten her something? As much as it pained her, even when their marriage was in the worst shape, he gave amazing gifts. Pity gifts, surprise gifts, push presents, everything, Logan Huntzberger always gave a good gift. That was one thing that had changed about Rory over the years. After becoming a Huntzberger she had become materialistic, it was like suddenly, because money didn't matter, she would just spend on anything and everything. She always had new clothes, pre-ordered lines, hell, there were a few designers who would ship her full collections, weeks, if not months before they were on the rack, simply because she was Rory Huntzberger.

As she flipped through the racks of clothing, some poor sales lady basically following her everywhere to carry her things and have them waiting for her at the register.

"Will that be all?" the sales lady asked as Rory finished grabbing herself a few items from Santa in the ladies, and cosmetics departments.

"No, I just need to head to menswear" Rory told her, clearly surprising the associate who had been working with Rory for long enough to know that she was divorced.

"Is there anything in particular you're looking for? the associate asked her.

"I'm looking for a couple of gifts" Rory told her, "I saw a trenchcoat on a mannequin on my way in, can you get me that, in a medium please?"

"The Burberry trench?"

"Sure" Rory nodded as she continued to look around, hoping she might be able to find a full ensemble, as she browsed the racks, she found a white, cable knit sweater, it was incredibly expensive, but there was something about it, that even though she had never seen Logan in anything even remotely similar, she knew was perfect for him. The sweater more or less epitomized everything she wished that there relationship was, weekends away, evenings spent watching television, or movies, or reading books, this sweater was the antithesis of all of the suits and collared shirts he had spent their marriage wearing. She had the associate pack one up in white, and another in black, and followed it up with a few pairs of jeans.

She could hardly believe that for the first time in a long time, she had enjoyed shopping for her ex husband.

"Your total for everything will be..." the associate clearly looked shocked by the number on the screen, "$6,798.19"

"Here you go" Rory quickly handed her credit card over, feeling mildly embarrassed by the amount she had just spent.

"Would you like to donate to the Hartford Children's Hospital?" the associate asked her before she processed the transaction, Rory knew from her previous shopping trips that the store was doing a fundraiser where they would match any and all donations that were made by shoppers.

"Of course" Rory smiled, "Take whatever I spent, double it, and then donate that much...so $6798.19 times two"

"Excuse me?" the associate was clearly shocked.

"I don't mean to be forward, but I just spent a lot of money on my kids, and family. If I can't spend that same amount on kids who really need it, then someone should probably kick my ass" she let out a small laugh, "So take my total, double it, and charge it, those kids deserve a Christmas"

"Would you like to fill out the sticker to say your name, and donation?" the cashier smiled.

"No" Rory smiled, "And I would appreciate it if you never told anyone about this" she continued as she signed her name on the credit receipt, _Rory Huntzberger, _"But I will need a copy of the donation receipt" even if Rory was trying to be generous, she knew she would have to file this with her income taxes, or Logan's because he paid the credit card bill.

xxxxx

"Ace" Logan breathed into the phone.

"Hey" Rory smiled as she dragged all of the bags into the house.

"I just got a call saying you had put $20,394.57 on the Amex at Neiman?" Logan was obviously a little bit shocked by the spending, "Was that you?"

"It was" Rory couldn't help but laugh, for years he had been trying to tell her to let loose, go nuts, spend, for years he had been bringing home outrageous gifts, and now the one time she went especially crazy he was calling her out on it, "I did part of the kids Christmas, and I donated double what I spent on the kids to the Hartford Children's Hospital. I have the tax receipt"

"That is the Rory that I know" Logan laughed, "Fax it over whenever you get a chance so I can have the accountant file it"

"Of course" Rory laughed as well, "So see you Thursday?"

"Can I bring anything?" Logan asked.

"Wrapping paper" Rory told him simply, "Once the kids go to bed we can go play Santa in the pool house"

"Are they going to have a record haul this year?" Logan asked her.

"They do every year" Rory laughed, "Although, I was thinking, this year, with us...talking, what if you were to spend Christmas Eve at the house" Rory suggested before quickly clarifying, "In the guest room, and then the kids don't have to split Christmas"

"That would..."

"Unless you and Sophie have plans" Rory quickly added.

"We aren't seeing each other anymore" Logan explained, "So Christmas with the kids is perfect. Look, Ace, sorry, but I have to go - meetings. See you Friday"


	6. Chapter 6

A/N: I still don't own Gilmore Girls. Well, my other story is done :( so I am writing this for now, and maybe something else in the future, I've had a fabulous suggestion that I will be exploring. This chapter we move forward! YAY! Truthfully, I had originally planned to have Rory and Logan get back together in the chapter I just posted, but didn't want to make it too soon, but now with all of these FAB reviews telling me that I need to get them together...well, hopefully this lives up to your expectations! Also - I know nothing about journalism/news/newscasting, so just let me make stuff up because I am not pretending to be an expert :)

a/n 2: and to those of you who read this when I had accidentally put in Ava instead of Riley, my bad, I have updated it, that was a typo on my part! Thanks!

**Chapter 6:**

"Hey" Logan smiled as Christian pulled the door to the house open, "Did you get bigger? I think you've grown a few feet!"

"I haven't grown, Dad" Christian rolled his eyes as Logan put a firm hand on his shoulder, "Who got to pick the movie tonight?"

"I did" Christian told him as they walked into the house, "I picked The Mighty Ducks"

"That certainly is an oldy" Logan laughed, "Is the pizza here yet?"

"Yes" Christian told him, "Mom wouldn't let us have any until you got here"

"Ok, well you go to the theatre downstairs, and Mom and I will be down with the pizza in a minute. Where is Riley?"

"Riley is already downstairs" Christian told him.

"Go on, I'm going to grab Mom, she in the kitchen?"

"Yes" Christian told him as he headed towards the door to the basement.

"Hey" Logan nodded as he entered the kitchen, "Kids are downstairs, need me to take anything down for you?"

"Pizza" Rory nodded as she grabbed plates and napkins, "I checked the bar down there yesterday, so its all good to go"

"Perfect" Logan smiled as he kissed her gently.

"I've missed you" Rory admitted.

"Same" Logan quickly kissed her on the cheek once more as he grabbed the pizza.

"I should tell you something" Rory put the plates down for a moment.

"What's up?" Logan nodded as he leaned back against the counter, leaving hte pizza where it was.

"I broke up with Jess"

_"What the hell is going on with you Rory? Who are you?" Jess glared at her, they were fighting, again, it seemed like ever since they had run into Logan and Honor in the summer, all they did was fight._

_"I'm me" Rory threw her hands into the air, "I'm sorry I don't live up to whatever idea you had when we were 17!"_

_"Rory this is recent, what happened"_

_"I'm sleeping with Logan!" Rory spat, she was so sick of this dance, she was sick of pretending to like being with him._

_"You're what?" Jess was a mixture of shocked and angry._

_"I am sleeping with Logan" she repeated, "This is done. You and I, it's over" she told him as she stood up, leaving the coffee shop they had met at, "Don't call"_

"Wow" Logan nodded, "You ok?"

"Of course I'm ok" Rory laughed, "It's what I wanted, he wasn't right, he wasn't when we were 16, and he wasn't now"

"Well, I'm glad" Logan laughed as he picked up the pizza, "He was never good enough for you"

"And who is good enough for me?" Rory smirked as they headed towards the basement.

"Me" Logan told her simply with a grin on his face.

"We'll talk about that later" Rory laughed as they made their way down the stairs, "Alright guys, pizza is here"

"Is there cheese?" Riley asked as she took a plate from her mother.

"Half cheese, half pepperoni on this one for you and Christian" Rory told her, "And then grown up pizza for Dad and I"

"Which one is cheese?"

"This one" Rory put the pizza on the coffee table in front of the kids, "Use a napkin"

"What do you guys want to drink?" Logan asked as Christian took a piece of his own.

"Grape juice please"

"You know we don't have grape juice down here with the couch" Logan told her.

"Mommy!" Riley pouted.

"Your Dad is right, you know the rules" Rory laughed, "Christian what about you?"

"Water please?"

"That is my easy kid" Logan laughed as he grabbed two bottles of water for each of the kids, "Did you have milk with breakfast"

"Yes" the kids answered in unison.

"Alright" he put the two bottles on the coffee table before sitting down on the other couch with Rory.

"It's all set" Rory told him as as she pressed play on the remote, bringing picture to the projection screen.

"How did you pick this Christian?" Logan asked, surprised that his son would pick such an old movie.

"There's a kid on my hockey team who told me" Christian shrugged, taking a bite of his pizza.

"Alright, well, whatever you want" Logan smiled as the movie began to play, he leaned to Rory and whispered, "Who ever thought this is what we would be doing?"

"Dad?" Riley called.

"Yes?" Logan looked at her, lowering his voice in order to avoid disrupting the movie.

"Will you come sit with me?" Riley asked, moving over to make room between her and Christian.

"Of course" Logan winked at Rory and went to sit between the two kids, putting his arm tightly around Riley, "Love you beautiful"

xxxxxxx

"If I carry him, can you carry her?" Logan looked at the two kids sleeping on the couch after making it through the entire Mighty Ducks trilogy.

"Deal" Rory nodded, "And we still have presents to wrap" as she picked Riley up, holding her over her shoulder.

"Good luck" Logan nodded to Riley, who notoriously woke up when she was being carried to bed, it was like she had a sixth sense.

"No pajamas, just straight to bed" Rory smiled as she began walking towards the stairs with her little girl in her arms.

"Alright buddy" Logan picked up Christian, resting his head on his shoulder as he began walking up the stairs, it was a moment Logan savoured, he knew in a few years, not only would Christian be too big to be carried, but he would probably be too cool to have his Dad carrying him anywhere, no matter what the reason.

Logan smiled as he walked up stairs, through the main floor and to Christian's bedroom. The bedroom was so un-child like, Christian had chosen everything himself in the years earlier. The queen sized bed had crisp white linens, like you would find in a hotel, and the walls were a relaxing shade of green, the only thing Christian really wanted in his room was book shelves, and a desk, so there were wall to wall built ins and a desk taking up a full wall. There were pictures, pictures of Christian and his friends, sadly Logan didn't know many of his friends due to the fact that up until recently, he had been somewhat absent from his children's lives, there were pictures of his hockey team, and pictures of the family, Logan couldn't help but notice how even the photos with Riley and Rory, he had no recollection of, and based on the huge rock Rory was wearing in the photos, he knew they were still married. Had he really missed out on that much of his children's lives?

Putting him under the covers, Christian only stirred slightly as Logan gave him a kiss on the head, and made a silent promise, a promise that he would be there for his son, and actively participate in the lives of his kids. Logan realized more in that moment than he had with all of the years of Rory yelling, screaming and crying about his absences, he had let his children down, he had turned into Mitchum.

Logan walked quietly out of the room, closing the door as he left, he smiled as he saw Riley's door was still open.

"No mommy" Riley whispered, "I don't want to go to bed"

"Honey you were just asleep" Rory kissed her forehead, "If you go to sleep we will be one more sleep closer to when Santa comes"

Logan smiled as he listened to Rory try to rationalize this with their daughter, to coax her back into bed.

"No" Riley told her, "If I go to bed, if I go to bed when I wake up Daddy will be gone, and everything won't be fun anymore"

"Honey" Rory held her hand tight against her heart, "I think Daddy will be here, in your heart" Rory pushed her hands gently against Riley's heart, "And I think that if you wish really hard before you go to bed, that maybe, things will be better. I can't promise what is going to happen, but Daddy is getting so much better, and I think that things are going to be okay again"

"So when I wake up, you and Daddy won't be fighting?" Riley asked again. Even though Riley had no real memory of her parents being married, she remembered the fallout, she remembered messages between nannies and snarky remarks.

"I promise you, Daddy and I are done fighting"

Logan backed away from the door listening to the conversation, he had always thought that Riley was too young, that she didn't know what was happening, that she wouldn't notice all of the changes. He had been wrong. He leaned back on the banister to wait for Rory, they needed to talk.

"Hey" Rory whispered a few minutes later as she pulled the door closed.

"I really fucked them up, didn't I?" Logan asked her, the pain evident in his eyes.

"Logan, they are kids, they're confused, and they don't understand all of the grown up things going on" Rory tried to ease the guilt she could see in his eyes.

"I want to fix it" Logan stepped towards her, "I missed too much, I didn't realize that it wasn't just money they needed"

"Logan" Rory couldn't help but smile, he was saying all the right things, all the things that she had been wanting him to say since well before the divorce.

"No" Logan shook his head, he was standing inches from her, "I need to make it to hockey games and dance recitals, know who their friends are, I can do it. I don't know why I didn't, but I'm telling you, Rory, dance recitals, hockey games, our anniversary. I'll never miss them again, just give me the chance, let me show you I won't let you down"

"Logan" she repeated again, a smile still playing on her lips.

"Please, Ace"

"You just said" Rory hadn't even noticed that her eyes had started to water, "Everything I have wanted to hear since before we were married. So if you're serious about this, if you are going to keep every promise you just made, then we can wrap presents later, because right now, we just need to go to bed. But if you're not serious, if you are just saying this in a moment of guilt, then we should go wrap presents"

Logan looked at her, intently, as if he was weighing his options, deciding how much he was willing to change to get his family back, he smiled as he leaned down and kissed her gently, resting his hands on her hips as she kissed him back, he could feel the smile growing on her lips as they continued to kiss and made their way back towards her, their, bedroom.

xxxxxxxxxx

"Dad?" Christian questioned as he opened the door to his mothers bedroom. "Mom?" his grin grew as he realized that his parents were in bed, together.

"Christian?" Rory shot up in bed, "Uh, give us one second, ok?" Rory smiled as Christian retreated out of the door, "Fuck" she looked at Logan who was still groggily taking in his surroundings, "Logan!"

"Shit" he groaned, he hadn't meant to fall asleep, but between the sex, and the talking which had occurred the night before, he had been too exhausted to move.

"Well, I guess this is it" Rory turned to him, "We tell them, and we tell them it is going to be different, and we tell them that no matter what we are going to be a family again" Rory told him firmly, "Or you go, and we never do this again"

"I'll take door number one" Logan mused as he fell back on the bed, "I've missed this bed"

"I replaced it last year" Rory told him as she got out of bed and put on a pair of sweatpants so she could go check on the kids, "Go shower"

"It's a new bed? It feels like the old bed?" Logan bounced around a little bit.

"Logan, up" Rory rolled her eyes at his child like behaviour.

xxxxxxx

"So Dad and I are going to be together again" Rory explained as she and Logan sat on the couch facing their two children. "How do you feel about that?"

"Are you going to keep fighting?" Christian asked.

"No" Logan shook his head, "I used to work too much, and I didn't put you first, and I promise Christian, I will always put you first"

"So no more sleepovers at your house?" Riley asked quietly, she was still in her pajamas, holding her stuffed bunny.

"No" Logan shook his head, "We're all going to live here again" he told her, considering Christian had already caught them in bed together, there wasn't much sense continuing with every other weekend, they both thought it would confuse the kids more. If they were going to do this, there would be no dating, they had to jump head first.

"Does that mean we only get one Christmas?" Christian asked

"Yes" Rory rolled her eyes, "You kids get too much anyway"

"So you guys are okay with this?" Logan asked his kids.

"Yes" they both repeated in unison.

"Better get packing?" Rory smiled, "Do you kids have anything at Dad's house that you want?"

"No" they both shook their heads.

"Alright then, so I just need my clothes" Logan couldn't contain the wide grin that was appearing on his lips.

"Daddy" Riley hopped off the couch and ran to him.

"Yes Riley?"

"You pinky promise?" Riley extended her pinky towards her father, "No more fighting?"

"I pinky promise" Logan smiled as he clasped his own pinky around hers. "I'm going to call my assistant, and have her send someone to pack my things" Logan looked from his children, to Rory, "Why don't we go make some hot chocolate?"

xxxxxxxxxx

"So you just...got back together with him?" Lorelai looked at her daughter, concern evident on her face.

"Well, yeah" Rory nodded, "I mean, truthfully, we've been sleeping together...for a while"

"You were sleeping with him? I mean you just broke up with Jess, what the hell is going on kid?"

"I don't know" Rory told her, "I just...Mom I've felt so broken since we split up, the kids have been broken, I've been broken, Logan makes us whole"

"But Rory, what about the things that went wrong?" Lorelai asked her, even though she had been a fan of Logan, she couldn't stand the way he put work ahead of Rory, and then later, the way he put work ahead of Christian and Riley.

"Mom we can work those out" Rory told her, "Do you believe that Dad was it for you? He was the person you were meant to be with?"

"Yes" Lorelai nodded, "But your Dad and I...we are just different"

"No, Mom, you're not" Rory shook her head, "Dad made mistakes, but you worked hard to make it work, and it wasn't always perfect, and you didn't always do that together. We took a break, we were apart, and Logan and I are both better people together"

"Are you happy, with him?" Lorelai sighed, Rory was right, if Logan was who made her happy, if Logan made their kids happy, and if Logan was prepared to step up, and to be the man that Rory had fallen in love with all those years ago, Lorelai was going to support them.

"When I'm with Logan, I feel like I can do anything, when I'm without Logan, I just...I feel like nothing I do will ever be good enough" Rory admitted.

"Do you think you'll go back to work?"

"I think I need to" Rory told her, "I wanted to be an international correspondent, and for some reason, I gave that up, I gave it up all on my own"

"Do you still want to be an international correspondent?" Lorelai smiled, she remembered how big her daughter's dreams were, for her entire life.

"I think I do" Rory nodded, "But I have two kids, and I can't just jump around the world"

"You can, Ror" Lorelai challenged her, "You can do anything, if Logan is back, if Logan is truly being supportive, there is no reason you cannot do anything you want"

xxxxxx

"Hey" Logan smiled as he walked into the house, _their _home after work. He was home at 6, like he was every other day, he had promised he would be home for dinner unless there was a reason, and even if there was a reason, he had to call. They had lasted 3 months like this so far, and Logan had yet to miss a dinner, or postpone a dinner.

"Hi" Rory smiled as she kissed him gently. She was wearing her wedding rings again, even though they weren't legally married, she felt like they were back to the way they were at the beginning of their marriage, when all there was between them was love.

"You look beautiful" Logan told her, "I got an interesting call today, at work"

"What call?" Rory asked as she grabbed a bottle of salad dressing from the fridge, "The kids are upstairs doing school work, dinner is in 10 minutes"

"Well I got a call from ABC" Logan told her, "Wanting to confirm a reference for one Lorelai Leigh Gilmore"

"Oh?" Rory couldn't hold her smile back.

"Yes" Logan smiled, "I didn't know you were applying as Lorelai Gilmore?"

"Well, I figure as a Huntzberger, on paper at least, I won't prove my own worth" Rory shrugged, "At least this way, they are offering Lorelai Gilmore a job, and then if they interview me, obviously anyone who lives in the United States would figure out that I'm Rory Huntzberger, but I don't want an interview because I am married to a media and publication mogul"

"You know HPG owns a huge share of ABC, right?" Logan laughed.

"Yes" Rory nodded, "But that is the point, I mean, I just want this job because I'm me, not because I'm married to you"

"Well, the good news is, they sound interested, so maybe in the next few days you can expect a call" Logan kissed her again, "What is for dinner? It smells amazing"

"Pork chops" Rory told him, "With some salad, veggies"

"Sounds great" Logan told her, "I was hoping, given that it is almost the weekend, we can go out for dinner together tomorrow, just the two of us?"

"I can see if my Mom can watch the kids?" Rory nodded.

"Or Honor and Josh can watch them?" Logan suggested.

"Sure, you call Hon, I'll go get the kids ready for dinner"

"Hey Ror" Logan grabbed her arm gently as she moved to leave the room.

"Yes Logan?" Rory smiled.

"I love you" he kissed her.

xxxxxxxxxx

"This place is nice, we haven't been here before...ever" Rory smiled as they sat in the dimly lit restaurant.

"I know, its new, my parents suggested it actually" Logan laughed.

"Mitchum and Shira, they do have great taste" Rory smiled.

"Did you get any calls today?" Logan asked, referring to the job with ABC.

"I did" Rory grinned.

"And..."

"Well, they want me to come in on Wednesday to New York for an interview" Rory explained.

"Rory thats awesome" Logan told her, "Why don't we have champagne, we should be celebrating!"

"I don't know" Rory smiled shyly. "I want this, so badly, but at the same time, I am afraid of what will happen if I'm not with the kids"

"Rory if you do this, your kids will know that their Mom can do anything" Logan reached across the table and held her hand.

"Is this what you want?" Logan asked her, he had asked her the same question for the past few months, since she had first expressed an interest in going back to work.

"I think so" Rory nodded, a slight look of concern in her eyes.

"Babe, you can do this, we can do this" Logan told her, "You aren't going to always be gone, you'll be gone a lot, but that is nothing we can't handle"

"It's easy to say that" Rory smirked, "There was a time that I thought our marriage could last even if you weren't around all the time"

"Well, this is going to be different" Logan told her, "We can do this Rory, you and I can do anything"

"So I'll go" Rory nodded, "And then we can figure it all out"

"Although, I do have another question for you" Logan smiled as he reached into his pocket and pulled out a small black box.

"Logan" Rory smiled, she had been showered with gifts in the time they had been back together, something that she did love.

Logan remembered the first time he asked her this question, the nerves he felt, the uncertainty of where there future would go, but the only thing that was exactly the same this time around, all these years later, was that Logan was completely sure of how in love with her he was, even if he was about to ask her, for the third time, to marry him.

_"Look, I know I screwed this up before" Logan fumbled over his words as they sat in the living room of their luxurious townhouse, eating Chinese food, like every other Saturday night since they had started dating, "But I want us to move forward Ace" he smiled at her as she cracked her fortune cookie open._

_"Logan!" Rory gasped as the diamond ring fell out of the cookie, "This is"_

_Before she knew it, he was on his knee in front of her, "Marry me, Ace, make me the happiest man in the world. I will give you anything and everything, just say yes"_

_"Yes!"_

Shaking his head to bring himself back to reality, he was in another moment, a decade later in his life and everything had changed, but so much was still the same. "I was thinking, Lorelai Leigh Gilmore Hayden Huntzberger" he laughed, "That maybe, you would do me the honour of marrying me...again"

"Logan" Rory repeated, a huge grin coming over her face.

"Rory" Logan repeated as she started to laugh almost uncontrollably.

"It is beautiful" Rory smiled at the massive pink diamond in front of her.

"Is that a yes?" Logan laughed.

"Of course it is" Rory nodded as Logan stood up and walked towards her, kissing her passionately, "I love you" she laughed as he took her old wedding rings off of her hand and put the new ring on.

"Thank you" Logan kissed her again, "Thank you for giving us this chance"

"The ring is beautiful" Rory laughed as Logan sat back down at his seat.

"It's Neil Lane, your old ones are Harry Winston, I figured I would switch it up a bit" Logan laughed, "I thought something different would be nice, and then we'll pick something more...classic out later"

"How on earth am I so lucky?" Rory laughed.

"Well I know you well enough to know that a pink diamond is not going to stay on your finger every day" Logan told her as the waiter brought over a bottle of champagne.

"This is amazing" Rory told him, "So we're going to get married"

"We are going to get married" Logan repeated, "I feel like I'm 25 again"

"Baby we are so far from 25" Rory laughed

"I know" Logan nodded, "But right now, I feel like I'm the luckiest guy in the world to have you, and our kids, and our family"

"So I guess I'll be an international corespondent, planning a wedding, raising kids" Rory smirked, still staring at her ring.

"I think basically you're trying to call yourself super woman" Logan laughed, taking a long sip of champagne.

"Well obviously I'm super woman"

They ate in relative silence, a comfortable silence, a silence where they enjoyed the fact that things finally seemed to be returning to how they should be. Their families, respectively were glad that they were back together, and Logan had stepped up. He hadn't missed a dinner, or broken a promise, more than anything, as Rory had explained to him soon after they had gotten back together, she didn't think he always needed to be there for everything, she didn't need him to attend every swimming lesson, but she had told him that he needed to be sure that if he promised his kids, or his wife that he would be somewhere, he had to be there.

"Dinner was nice" Rory smiled as they walked hand in hand back to the car.

"Only because you said yes" Logan squeezed her hand, "I'm glad...that this is where we are, I never though we would get back here"

"This is where we're supposed to be Logan, we ended up where we were always meant to be"


	7. Chapter 7

A/N: I love the reviews, please keep them coming! I am working my way through this, and I am also in the midst of writing another story (yay!)

**Chapter 7:**

"Alright guys"

"Again? Seriously? You promised you weren't going to to fight anymore" Christian crossed his arms as he sat across from his parents once more.

"We aren't fighting" Rory laughed, "Dad and I have some news"

"Are we getting a puppy?" Riley smiled.

"No honey" Rory shook her head, "You know we can't have a puppy"

"Fiinneeee" Riley let out a long, exasperated sigh, "What is it then?"

"Daddy and I" Rory looked to Logan who had his arm around her shoulder, "Want to know how you two would feel about us getting married again"

"Would anything be different?" Riley asked.

"Your last name is already Huntzberger" Christian told her.

"Exactly, so not a lot would be different" Logan told them, "But it would be different, and its important for Mom and I, and we thought you would be excited"

"Do I get to wear a pretty dress?" Riley asked, "And throw flowers? Will there be a big party like on the tv?"

"Do you guys want that?" Rory smiled at their reactions, "Do you want us to have a big party to show everyone how much we love each other?"

"I want the dress" Riley nodded.

xxxxx

"So now we're planning a wedding?" Emily threw her hands into the air, pretending to be upset by the announcement.

"No Grandma" Rory told her, "Logan and I are planning, and paying for a wedding"

"I just feel like we've done this, why even get a divorce?" Emily looked at her granddaughter.

"Look, Grandma, this is where we are now, lets not focus on the past, we are just here to tell you, we are passed the age that we need permission for anything, nor are we requesting your help" Rory told her firmly, "And really, I don't mean to alarm you Grandma, not that you and Grandpa aren't really well off, but Logan and I don't need anyone's money, ever"

"Well are you sure this is best for the kids?" Emily asked.

"Grandma, you and Grandpa separated and then got back together..."

"That was different"

xxxxxxx

"I'm surprised Mom wasn't more happy?" Lorelai looked at Rory as they looked through wedding magazines.

"She'll come around, she always comes around" Rory shrugged, "I can't believe I'm having another wedding, like after the big pomp and circumstance around the first wedding, I just...never imagined I would do another big one"

"Well, this is for the kids" Lorelai smiled. "Are they still excited?"

"Riley is practically planning it herself' Rory laughed, "And I mean, now that I have the job, its just nuts"

"How often are you working?"

"One segment a week for now" Rory told her, she had been hired by ABC to work as a political correspondent, typically it involved one segment a week, but when there was an election, and when there were big stories, she would obviously be gone for longer.

"That certainly is manageable, when do you start?"

"In a few weeks" Rory explained, "I haven't decided if I will go by Gilmore or Huntzberger, not that the world doesn't know me as Huntzberger...I think I just answered my own question. Huntzberger"

"It's a good name" Lorelai smiled as she hugged her daughter, "I am happy that you are happy"

"Thanks Mom" Rory smiled, "That means a lot"

"So where are you thinking that this wedding will take place?"

"Do you remember, over Labour Day, Logan and I went to the Hamptons, and he bought that place?"

"Yes, the ridiculous estate" Lorelai nodded.

"Yes, that one" Rory laughed, "Well, I was thinking there, I mean it is big enough to have all of the people we want to have, and private, it is right on the water, it's gorgeous"

"That sounds nice Ror" Lorelai smiled, "Is there enough room for people to stay, or will we need to get hotels, or what?"

"Well, we were thinking we could rent a couple of houses in the area as well, that way we could have our privacy, and everyone could enjoy a mini vacation, I mean, we kind of assumed that some people would be able to stay together in a house, like you, Dad, Gigi, Sookie, Jackson, their kids"

"Yeah, we can stay together" Lorelai nodded, "So when will it be?"

"We haven't hammered that out yet" Rory told her, "I mean we need to get a guest list together, and then see how many houses we can get rented, and when, and then we can pick a date"

"Wow" Lorelai smiled, "Well, kid, you've done good"

"Thanks Mom" Rory smiled, "Are you and Dad coming for dinner this weekend?"

"I think so" Lorelai nodded, "I mean I feel like we haven't seen the kids in forever"

"Mom it's only been like 2 weeks" Rory laughed.

"And in 2 weeks, Christian could be 6 feet tall, and you could have buzzed off all of Riley's hair"

"I can assure you, neither of those things happened"

"I love the ring" Lorelai laughed as she looked at Rory's giant pink diamond.

"You know, I wasn't sure if a pink diamond was really for me, but now that I have it, I kind of love that its different. I mean Logan and my marriage this time is different, so maybe a ring that is different suits it. And I still have my other engagement ring, and my other wedding band, I don't need so many of them"

"Maybe you should give some of your excess jewelry to your mother" Lorelai laughed, "Your dad never buys me anything nice"

"He buys you plenty of nice jewelry, unfortunately you have a billionaire son in law to compete with, so just about anything Dad buys is never going to live up to the ridiculous amount of money that Logan has"

"Well isn't someone in love with themselves" Lorelai stuck her tongue out at her daughter.

"Oh god" Rory rolled her eyes as she looked at her watch, "I have to go, Christian has a school thing we have to go to"

"A school thing? And Grandma Lore didn't get so much as an invite?"

"Do you want to come Mom, it's an assembly or something" Rory explained as she stood up, "I can drive you, Logan is meeting me there"

"Well do I need to change, I wouldn't want to embarrass him like I used to embarrass you at school"

"Mom, you wore cut offs and a belly top to my first day of Chilton... you embarrassed yourself" Rory told her, "You look fine, do you want to come or not?"

"I'm coming, but I want to borrow a sweater or something from you, so can we stop by the house first?"

"Sure" Rory agreed.

xxxxx

"Hey beautiful" Logan kissed her cheek as he waited for her before entering the assembly.

"You made it" Rory smiled, she was still so thrilled when Logan kept his word and made it to these events, it gave her all the faith in the world that they would be able to make it work.

"I made it" Logan nodded as he hugged Lorelai, "How are you?"

"Good" Lorelai smiled, "Although I don't have a massive pink diamond on my finger, and I thought I was always a good mother in law, I don't quite understand the snub" she teased.

"I'm sure I can make something work" Logan laughed as he put his arm around Rory and the three of them entered the auditorium.

"Mom don't try to force Logan to buy you diamonds, it's weird"

"That's what Logan loves about me" Lorelai stuck her tongue out as they walked to their seats, Logan had arrived early to save them.

"So what is this for?" Rory asked with a small laugh, it was hard to keep track of everything that was going on at the school, it seemed like every other day there was a fundraiser for something, or a fair for something else.

"I think its because they finally got the funding for the school's new green house" Lorelai pointed to a giant picture of the greenhouse which would be built in the summer according to the sign.

"Oh" Logan and Rory both nodded as the room quieted while the headmaster came out to say a few words.

"Hello students, faculty, parents, alumni" he began.

"Seriously, alumni for a private elementary school" Logan whispered to Rory with a small chuckle.

"We appreciate all of you coming today to celebrate the fact that we have finally obtained enough funding to complete the green house we have been hoping to build on campus for the past year or so. It was very important to us to fund this project on our own because we did not want to ask the students to pay for it by increasing tuition" he stated simply while numerous parents nodded their heads in agreement.

"That is ridiculous" Lorelai whispered to Rory, "Instead they just ask that some poor schmuck hand his kid a cheque to pay for it"

"Mom, you did this kind of stuff at Chilton" Rory laughed as they kept their attention focused on the headmaster.

"We had one student in particular who procured a great deal of donations for this cause, and we would like to take a moment to acknowledge him" the headmaster smiled, "If I could have Christian Huntzberger join me please" he smiled as Christian awkwardly walked up beside him, "Not only is Christian a remarkable student in terms of his academics, and student leadership"

"Oh god" Rory groaned, having not realized that either she or Logan had probably signed the cheque which allowed the donation, "He is going to be so embarrassed, he hates things like this"

"He's going to be a disaster tonight" Logan smirked, his hand covering his mouth.

"Christian managed to procure over $100,000 in donations for this project. He has shown all students how important it is to be involved in school, and the importance of charity, now, Christian, how did you do it?" the headmaster smiled as he put the microphone to Christian's mouth.

"Um..." Christian looked out at the people in front of him, smiling when he saw his parents and his Grandmother, he could see that Logan was chuckling, "Well, you want the truth?"

"Of course, son" the headmaster laughed.

"I asked my Grandpa Mitchum for a cheque, and then I asked my Aunty Honor, and then I asked my Dad" he shrugged simply.

"Oh son, don't be modest I'm sure it took more convincing than that!"

"Not really" Christian shook his head, "I mean, they're Huntzberger's, so it wasn't really a big deal"

"Oh sweet jesus" Lorelai laughed as the words came out of his mouth, and the majority of the auditorium laughed.

"Did he really just say that?" Rory looked at Logan who was nearly hysterical, his face bright red as he did his best not to let the laughter out. "My son just said, at an assembly, in front of his peers, and their parents, that he is so loaded he only had to ask 3 people to donate"

"That just happened"

xxxxxxxx

"Dad!" Christian grinned as he ran to his father after the assembly.

"That was some show you put on up there" Logan laughed.

"Well it was true" Christian shrugged, "Do we get to go out for dinner?"

"No" Rory shook her head, "We're going to stay in tonight, and have a discussion about modesty"

"What is modesty?" Christian made a face.

"Modesty is very important" Logan told him, patting him on the shoulder, "It means you can't brag, and you need to be ... humble about all the things you are fortunate enough to have"

"Did I do something wrong?" Christian asked, a small look of worry coming over his face.

"No buddy" Logan smiled and shook his head, "You did great"

"Excuse me" the headmaster approached them, "Mr and Mrs. Huntzberger, may I have a word?"

"Actually we were just about to take Christian home, is it something important?" Rory asked as she did up her jacket.

"It will just take a moment" the headmaster told them.

"You go Ror, Lorelai, I'll talk to the headmaster and see you at home" Logan told them as he kissed Rory's cheek, "See you later buddy" he turned his head to the headmaster after he saw that his family was out of earshot, "What can I do for you?"

"I just wanted to speak to you for a moment about Christian's comments at the assembly"

"What about them?" Logan knew the conversation that was coming, and he knew that he would win.

"Well, I thought that maybe we could all agree that it was slightly inappropriate for Christian to well...boast about his wealth that way, and I was hoping that you and your wife might have a conversation about it with him"

"Well, sir, if you don't mind my asking, did you warn my son that he would be making any comments or statements?" Logan put his hands in his pockets, looking for his cell phone, not bothering to correct the statement regarding him and Rory being married, they would be married soon enough.

"No" the headmaster shook his head.

"You know, I think that a 9 year old being put on the spot in front of such a large group of people, might get flustered, and so my kid, my sweet kid, he told the truth, and the truth is that he asked his Dad, Grandpa, and Aunt for money, and this is what he came up with. I'm sorry that it wasn't a motivational enough story for you. However, and maybe this is a pointer that you might be able to use in the future, but working in journalism and publishing for most of my life has taught me how important it is to fact check" Logan grinned, he could tell that the headmaster hadn't thought through what he was saying, "So if you would like I will happily take those 3 cheques from my Dad, and sister, and we can find another cause to donate to"

"I...well, I had never thought about it that way"

"I don't think you really gave it much thought at all" Logan told him, "And truthfully, you need to remember that as far as I know, my son is your only student set to inherit a multi billion dollar organization, so when he says things like that, its because that is his real life. Now if you'll excuse me, not only do I have to have a discussion with my son about how fortunate he is to not only have a great family, but also be incredibly wealthy, and explain to him that most people aren't so fortunate, but I will be having a discussion with Rory as well about whether or not there is a better school in the area for both of our children to attend"

"Mr Huntzberger, that was not my intention" the headmaster tried to back peddle, not only had he not thought through what he had said when he approached Logan, he hadn't thought about the possible long term implications of the Huntzberger's were no longer donating to the school.

"Well, intention or not, that is what you have achieved. Have a wonderful day" Logan nodded before he turned around and left the school

xxxxxx

"What did the headmaster want?" Rory asked as Logan stepped into the living room, she was looking online at houses in the Hamptons while the kids played with Lorelai in the basement.

"Oh he wanted to chastise us for letting our son believe he had a lot of money"

"You're kidding me, right?" Rory laughed.

"I wish" Logan laughed, "I reminded him that maybe in the future before thrusting a 9 year old in front of a bunch of people, warn him, give him a chance to prepare, then I offered to take the cheques back, and then I threatened to send Ri and Christian to another school"

"Protective much?" Rory smiled as he closed his computer.

"The fact of the matter is, our kids are rich, we are rich, it's our life. They can't expect a kid to know any different" Logan shrugged, "That guy was a douche"

"Did you just call the headmaster of our son's school, a douche?" Rory laughed as he sat down beside her and pulled her close to him.

"I did" Logan laughed, "Because its true"

"Logan you can't threaten to pull the kids out of school" Rory laughed, "I mean, I'm glad you stood up for him, because that is ridiculous, but you can't fly off the handle"

"Look, Rory, there are tonnes of private schools in the world, I would know, I got kicked out of most of them, the point is, we have enough money, fortunately, that our kids can go wherever they want, I don't want them going somewhere that doesn't value them" Logan told her, "And that man, doesn't value any of us"

"He will stay in that school as long as he wants to be in that school, you will not throw tantrums" Rory warned him, "Now, the wedding"

"Excellent change of subject" Logan laughed.

"I am thinking, we can book a block of houses for the weekend at the beginning of May, it might not be super hot, but the weather will be good, and then we can do a weekend, the kids can come back to Hartford with one of our parents, or Honor, something like that, and then we can spend the week at the house"

"Is that what you want to do?" Logan asked her.

"Well, I want you to want to do it too" Rory told him.

"Look, Ror, if this is what makes you happy, then we can do it" Logan told her, "I will get a new tux, and that is all that matters to me"

"So a couple of months from now is okay then?"

"It's perfect, is that enough time for you to get a dress?" Logan asked her.

"The beauty of having a last name like Huntzberger" Rory laughed, "Is that people will basically do anything you want, so yes, I will have a dress"

"And I have a feeling you already know who is designing it?"

"Well, Monique Lhuillier sent me some sketches" Rory grinned.

"You are such a princess" Logan kissed her head, "How long until dinner?"

"Christian convinced me we should go out" Rory laughed, "So we are going to that new jazz bar, the one with great pizza and drinks"

"Sounds great, is your Mom coming?"

"I think so" Rory nodded, "I mean if she wants"

"Of course" Logan kissed her, "Well if you don't mind I am going to go change, I don't think I need to be in this suit for much longer"

"But you look so sexy in your suit" Rory pouted.

"Well are you going to make good on those pouty eyes and come upstairs with me, or not?" Logan laughed.

"Logan!" Rory smiled, "The kids are downstairs, so not now, but I promise you, tonight"

"Don't go making promises you can't keep, Ace" Logan winked as he took the stairs two at a time, "Give me 20 minutes"

xxxxx

"Daddy will you tell me a story?" Riley asked, her eyes fluttering shut, it was Logan's turn to put her to sleep, and normally it was a long and drawn out event.

"What story do you want to hear?"

"The one about when Mommy told you I was being borned"

"Alright" Logan nodded as he snuggled next to her, "It was a Tuesday night" he began, "And I had just come home from a business trip to Australia, which is really far away, so I was very tired"

"Why were you there?"

"For work" Logan told her, "So I got home, and Mommy had made dinner, and I was so so tired, and Christian was already asleep by the time I got back, so it was just the two of us, Mommy and I, and everything that we had was baby sized, and so I wondered why I was eating a baby meal, and then Mommy told me it was because we were having a new baby"

"That was me!" Riley laughed.

"Exactly, that was you" Logan kissed her head, "And then because when Mommy was pregnant she loved chocolate, we ate a huge chocolate cake"

"I love chocolate, do I love chocolate because Mommy ate it when I was in her tummy?"

"No" Logan laughed, "I think you love chocolate because all girls love chocolate"

"Hey Daddy?"

"Hey princess?" Logan grinned, he loved their moments together. He loved just enjoying each others company for a short while it could just be them.

"I love you"


	8. Chapter 8

A/N: Sorry for the delay, I got in a car accident on Monday and so my plans for the week didn't really go...well, as planned. So here is the chapter, we have a little bit of drama, which sucks, but is necessary.

**Chapter 8**

"Mommy where are you going?" Riley cried as Rory tried to leave the house to make it to her first day of work.

"Honey, I have work today, we talked about this last night" Rory kissed her head, "I will be home first thing tomorrow morning"

"But what about my bedtime stories?" Riley cried.

"Honey I read you bedtime stories last night, Daddy will read them to you tonight" Riley told her.

"Okay babe, come here" Logan stepped in and took his crying daughter, he gave Rory a quick kiss on the cheek, "You'll do great Ace, call me when you get to New York"

"I love you" Rory smiled as she grabbed her bag.

"I love you too"

"DON'T GO MOMMY!" Riley screamed causing both Rory and Logan to flinch at the high pitched noise.

"Ri, stop screaming" Logan warned her as Rory smiled and closed the door.

"I WANT MY MOMMY!" she continued to scream as Logan set her down on the floor, "I WANT MY MOMMY! MOMMY! MOMMY! MOMMY"

"Lorelai Honor Huntzberger" Logan warned, "That is enough"

"I WANT MOMMY!"

"Alright, Ri" Logan bent down in front of her, "You need to take a deep breath and try to calm down, Mommy will be home tomorrow, she is going to work for one day, and she will be back"

"MOMMY!"

"Riley, please calm down otherwise you are going to go to your room and have a time out"

Riley began stomping her feet on the ground as she begged for her mother to return.

"MOMMY!" she screamed

"Ri, baby, come on" Logan lifted her up as she still tried to resist him, "Mommy isn't going to be home until tomorrow, you'll be fine, and if you calm down in time we can have a fun night, if you don't calm down, then you are going to spend your night in bed"

"Why did Mommy leave?" Riley cried as she caught her breath.

"Baby, Mom is going to work, she wants to do something else that she loves, and she will only be gone one day" Logan told her.

"Why?"

"Because she is very good at being a journalist, telling stories, and that is what she wanted to do when she was a little girl"

"I want to be a fairy" Riley sniffled.

"Then you can be a fairy" Logan laughed, kissing her head, "Now, you have a 5 minute time out for your tantrum" he told her, "Sit in the chair please" he watched her walk to her time out chair and sit in it, "Alright, I'll be back in 5"

xxxxxxxxx

"So, Mrs. Huntzberger" her new producer, Jillian, smiled, "How was your trip here? Did you drive?"

"I flew" Rory told her, "It was good, I was excited, nervous"

"Well your credentials certainly are great, and obviously the world is familiar with you, give your...ex husband" Jillian told her.

"We're actually getting re-married" Rory told her, "But this is...this is my dream job, I mean, I love being at home, with my kids, and I am so fortunate to do that, but I am really excited to be doing this"

"Well we're excited to have you" Jillian smiled, "For tonight, and tomorrow's segment, we are going to do interviews with you just to introduce the viewers to you, and to get a feel for the camera"

"So a segment tonight, and a segment in the morning" Rory nodded, "Live or recorded?"

"Live" Jillian told her, "Now, we'll take you to wardrobe, don't worry, we got your sizes from Huntzberger, and they also gave us a list of the designers you like to work with"

"Oh, I will ... I can wear anything, I am not that picky" Rory smiled, "Is there anywhere in particular I should go?"

"I'll take you around" Jillian smiled, "This is obviously the studio"

"Yes" Rory laughed.

xxxxxxxx

As Logan tucked his kids into bed, he knew he needed a drink, and he knew that Rory needed an award for all of the years she did this without him, all of the years he had failed to come home on time, or failed to come home at all.

As he reached his man cave in the basement, although it had become more of a child cave since the kids, but it still had his bar, his big screen TV, some really comfortable chairs, and access to the backyard if he wanted to smoke a cigar.

He picked up his phone and dialed a familiar number, "Hey" he grinned into the phone, "Rory is out of town, want to come by for a drink?" he waited for a moment, to listen to the person on the other line's response, "Yeah, come in through the basement, the kids are asleep so keep quiet...see you in a few" he hung up the phone with a smile on his face. This, what he was doing tonight was something he didn't get to do often, and its funny, because when he thought back, it had probably been since his college years that he really took the time to have a night to himself. Even when he and Rory were apart, he worked constantly.

"Hello mate" Finn smiled as he let himself into the basement door, "This is a surprise"

"Finn" Logan stood up and hugged him, "Did you bring Colin?"

"I'm right here, just trying to to remember how to get around this place" Colin smirked, "I had just gotten used to the other house"

"Yeah well I'm sorry I got back together with my wife...you remember her...Rory?" Logan laughed as he poured his two friends a drink, "Just keep quiet because the kids are asleep and if Christian finds out you two were here, he is going to be really pissed that I didn't wake him up"

"That boy is just like his mother" Finn grinned, "An excellent judge of character"

"She divorced me" Logan laughed.

"Excellent judge of character" Finn repeated as he sat down, "So, what brings us all here today, usually it is your beautiful ex wife that gets us together"

"I know, I know, I've been a terrible friend" Logan admitted, "I've just been...busy"

"Yes, running Huntzberger, we know, we don't want to hear about it, and we aren't proud of you. Sell out" Colin told him with a laugh.

"Anyway, I am sure my wonderful soon to be not-ex-wife has already called you, and bestowed this task upon you, but I wanted it to come from me" Logan explained, "I was hoping, much like you were at my first wedding, you, Colin, would be a groomsman in this wedding, and Finn, I know you wanted it the first time, would be my best man"

"We would love to" Colin smiled at the reversal, Finn had been outraged the first time around when Colin had been the best man so it was only fitting that Finn get a chance the second time around, "But we aren't doing it a third time, so this better stick. Where is the beautiful Ms. Huntzberger?"

"In New York" Logan told him, "Working"

"Working? What did you run out of money?" Finn laughed, "I'd be happy to loan you some, mate"

"We didn't run out of money" Logan rolled his eyes, "You know Rory, this is all she's ever wanted to do, and somehow, once we got married and this house, and kids, her dreams kind of went on the side burner, she deserves her dreams"

"So you're sure you don't need money?" Finn looked at him cautiously.

"I'm sure I don't need money" Logan laughed and patted his friend on the shoulder, "Thank you though, very much for the incredibly kind offer. It terrifies me that if Rory and I die, you two will be near our kids"

"Us too" Colin nodded, "My own kids are enough to make me go insane"

"So, boys, how is everything?"

"Oh, you know, just dabbling in things" Finn told him.

"By things you mean women, don't you?"

"Of course he means women" Colin laughed, "Finn will never settle down, he will grow old to be a crazy old cat lady named Finneus"

"That is a scary thought Finn"

"This is why we don't hang out" Finn laughed as he got himself another drink, "You think so little of me, in fact, my two supposed good mates haven't even been around often enough lately to know that I, am dating someone...a woman in fact"

"Well my first bet was a guy so..." Logan smirked, knowing he was going to irk Finn with his statement.

"Very funny, she is a lovely lady, her name is Melanie" Finn explained, "She works at one of the hotels"

"You're happy?" Colin looked at him, saving his witty remarks for another time.

"Yes, very happy, she is a very nice girl" Finn told them, "I was thinking I might bring her to the wedding...whenever it gets sorted out"

"Wow, a long term plan" Logan nodded, "Definitely, you know she'll have to get Rory's stamp of approval though"

"And Steph will put her through the ringer too" Colin laughed.

"Yes well, the other women in my life will have to get used to it" Finn told them as they heard little footsteps coming down the stairs, "I think we've been caught"

"Who's turn is it" Colin looked to his friends, "Those sound like Riley feet"

"I'll go" Logan laughed, "There's no turns" he told them as he stood up and walked to the stairs, "Hey princess" he smiled as he saw Riley standing at the third to last stair.

"Daddy" she whispered.

"What's up?" Logan laughed as he picked her up, "Could you not sleep?"

"No" Riley shook her head, "My tummy hurts"

"Where does it hurt?" Logan asked as he put his hand on her forehead, "Do you think seeing Uncle Colin and Uncle Finn would help? You can have some ginger ale to settle your stomach?"

"Ok" Riley nodded, resting her head on Logan's shoulder as he carried her back to where the boys were.

"Hey guys" Logan smiled, "Riley isn't feeling good, so she is going to have some ginger ale and sit with us for a while"

"Do you want me to grab some soda crackers from the kitchen?" Colin suggested.

"Yes please" Logan nodded as he put Riley down on one of the chairs, "Ri do you want to sit with Uncle Finn?"

"I want Mommy" Riley pouted.

"Well I am not nearly as good as Mommy" Finn came and sat beside her, "So how about Uncle Finn for a few minutes, and maybe that will help, before you know it, Mommy will home"

"Really?" Riley looked at him as she snuggled up against him.

"Here you go angel" Logan handed her a sippy cup full of ginger ale, "Take little sips please"

"Ok" Riley nodded, taking a small sip of the drink, "What are you doing?"

"We were just here to hang out with Dad" Finn explained, "We came over too late to see you guys"

"Christian is going to miss you" Riley told him, "I still hurt"

"Stay still" Finn told her, putting his hand on her forehead, "Logan" he called as Colin reemerged with crackers.

"What's up?"

"She is a little warm" Finn whispered.

"I know" Logan nodded, "You know what angel" he smiled at Riley as he grabbed his cellphone, "I'm going to call the doctor"

"You know what" Colin suggested, "I have two better ideas"

"Better ideas?" Logan asked.

"Why don't we call Aunty Steph to come over" Colin told him, they had a live in nanny so it was easy for Steph to get away, "And then we call Aunty Paris, because Aunty Paris is a doctor, and she's so much less scary than the regular doctor" he smiled at Riley.

"I want Aunty Paris and Aunty Steph" Riley nodded.

"Ok" Logan agreed, "You call your wife" he told Colin, "I'll call Paris"

xxxxxx

"Your wife leaves you with your kid for one night and this is what happens?" Paris smirked as she walked into the house, "And Doyle says you owe him a drink for this"

"Of course" Logan threw his head back as he closed the door behind Paris, "She has a fever, and her stomach hurts"

"Well she is a kid" Paris looked at him, "Where is she?"

"She's in her room with Steph"

"Ok" Paris nodded, "Anything else?"

"Do you think I should call Rory?"

"Let me look at her first, if I think we need to call Rory, we'll call Rory, but we might just be upsetting her for no reason, so for now, we don't need to call"

"Thank you for coming Paris"

"Thanks for not killing the kids, I happen to like them"

Logan just rolled his eyes as he followed Paris upstairs to Riley's bedroom, "Hey there, I hear your tummy hurts?"

"Yes" Riley nodded, her eyes were puffy from crying as Steph sat with her on her bed, rubbing her hair gently.

"Hey Steph" Paris nodded, "Ok, so I just want to take your temperature" Paris explained as she grabbed her thermometer from her bag, "Just put this under your tongue for a minute"

Riley nodded as Paris put the thermometer in her mouth and waited for a moment.

"Ok, let's see" Paris smiled as she waited a moment and took the thermometer out of her mouth, "Alright, you have a fever" she turned back to Logan who was waiting, mouthing the words to Logan, "107, call Rory"

"Hey baby, I'm going to be right back, can you just stay with the girls for a minute?"

"Ok" Riley whined, "Daddy it hurts"

"I know sweetheart" Paris smiled, "But that is why Aunty Steph and I are here, we are so much cooler than Daddy"

Logan quickly left the room and went to the hallway, it was late, he knew he shouldn't be calling Rory this late, but he had to.

"Hello?" Rory answered the phone, he could tell she had been sleeping, she was groggy.

"Ace, hey, it's me"

"Logan, what's wrong?" she knew immediately that he wouldn't just be calling.

"It's Ri, she has a fever, its 107" he explained, "Paris is here, I just...I wanted to call"

"Oh my god" Rory groaned, "Okay, well, I ... I can't come home yet"

"I know, but you needed to know about this" Logan told her, explaining why he had called, "I will take care of it, don't worry"

"Call me if anything changes" she told him, "I'm sorry babe"

"It's okay, how did tonight go?"

"It was good" Rory told him, "But you go be with Riley, and just...call, if anything happens, I probably won't sleep anymore"

"Thanks Ace, love you"

"I love you too" Rory told him as she hung up the phone and fell back into the bed.

"So tell me if this hurts" Logan heard Paris as he walked back into the bedroom which was over crowded despite being a large room.

"OW!" Riley shouted as Paris gently tapped from her belly button down and to the right, checking for signs of appendicitis.

"Ok" Paris stood up, "Honey, I don't want you to worry, but we are going to get you to the hospital"

"The hospital?" Logan repeated.

"Call Rory" Paris told him.

"I don't want to die!" Riley looked at Steph and Paris with panic in her eyes.

"Hey" Paris shook her head, "Don't you worry for a second" she kissed her gently, "You are going to be fine, because Aunty Paris promises that it will be okay"

"Promise promise?"

"I promise"

xxxxxxx

"What the hell is going on?" Rory shouted as she walked into the private waiting room that they had been placed in.

"Hey" Logan stood up and gave her a hug, "She has appendicitis, so they are removing her appendix"

"Oh my god, is she okay? Was she scared? I can't believe I wasn't here"

"She's fine, Paris and Steph were with her, so she wasn't just surrounded by the boys"

"Oh god" Rory cried, "Where is Christian?"

"Colin had to go back to his house, but Finn is at our house, he will wait for Christian to wake up and then explain everything"

"Where is Paris?"

"She is actually operating" Logan told her, "She has privileges here, and she said she didn't trust the surgeon who was on call"

"Well, that is what Paris is good for" Rory whispered, "I'm scared, should we be terrified? Can we do anything?"

"Paris says to just relax" Logan told her as he held her close, "She says there is nothing we can do, and she has been sending a nurse out to let us know what is going on, she should be out any minute"

"Did you call anyone else?"

"No, I didn't want to worry anyone"

"I can't believe I wasn't here"

"I'm sorry" Logan whispered.

"This wasn't your fault babe" she told him, she knew he would feel awful about this, but it was a freak thing, there was nothing he could do to plan for it. "How long has she been gone?"

"An hour" Logan told her.

"This is terrifying" Rory sighed, "I mean, remember when Christian fell and..." she trailed off before she finished, he didn't remember because he hadn't been there.

_"Rory, what's up?" Logan asked as he sat in his seventh meeting that day._

_"It's Christian" she told him, her panic obvious, he should have expected something was wrong given that she had demanded his secretary give him the call despite being in a meeting, "He fell, at the park, and he hit his head"_

_"Did you take him to the hospital?"_

_"Of course I did, they are doing brain scans and tests and x-rays"_

_"Rory I will come by after work, but in the meantime, call Paris, she can help you"_

_"Logan I need you to come, please, come, this is our son"_

_"Rory, I know, I would, but I am taking over a paper, I've been in meetings all day, I can't get away Rory, I'll have someone come by"_

_"Someone, you want someone to come by, that is our child Logan! You can't send someone, our little girl, our BABY is with her nanny, while we don't even know what is wrong with our son!"_

_"Rory!" Logan felt himself getting angry, "I can't fix this, I'm sorry, I wish I could come, but I can't. Please just call my assistant to make sure she tells me what is going on"_

_"Your assistant? Are you kidding me?"_

"I'm sorry" Logan sighed, "I know I wasn't a good husband to you"

"It doesn't matter now" Rory let him hold her, "We need to be strong for Riley"

xxxxxx

"Hey" Paris smiled as she entered the waiting room, "Sorry, I know I was gone for a while"

"Paris" Rory stood up and immediately hugged her friend, "How is our girl?"

"Well, the appendectomy went fine" Paris gave her a half smile, "She will recover fully from that"

"But"

"What makes you think there is a but?" Logan asked her, with confusion as the two shared looks.

"But while I was operating, we found a mass, on her kidney" Paris explained.

"Oh my god" Rory breathed, "Paris what is wrong with my baby?"


	9. Chapter 9

a/n: Like I said before, this has been a crazy week for me. So this chapter is kind of sad, we see a bit of backstory to the Logan/Rory divorce, and obviously Riley is sick :(

I still do not own Gilmore Girls

Please Read and Review :)

**Chapter 9:**

"Logan, no" Rory shook her head, they had been fighting over the same conversation since Paris had given them the diagnosis, and recommended an oncologist for Riley. "We are not going to do that, we have every other option in the world, we have unlimited funds, we cannot just...put random pieces into her!"

"I know we can't" Logan agreed, "It just...it sounds so easy"

"We aren't doing it" Rory repeated, Paris had suggested having a third child, a child who would genetically match Riley so that she could receive bone marrow, blood transfusions, and various other donations that would be created perfectly to help Riley.

"We're losing her" Logan sighed, "Every day, she gets a little bit sicker"

"Logan please stop talking like that" Rory took a long sip of her wine, "Christian is going to be home any minute, so we should probably just take a breath and try to relax"

"You're right" Logan nodded, "Who is at the hospital with Ri? I hate when she's there alone"

"She's never alone" Rory assured him, "Steph is there with the kids right now"

"Good" Logan nodded, "It's my night for bedtime stories, so I'll go"

"She should be home next week" Rory sighed.

They had received her diagnosis several months earlier, and it had nearly shattered them. Rory didn't know what she would have done if she had been alone to receive that news. There were no warning signs, and the oncologist that Paris had recommended did her best to convince them that there was nothing they could have done. Riley had just been acting like a normal kid until one day she wasn't. Riley had a rare form of leukemia. The mass Paris had found on her kidney was benign, but it had caused them to run other tests which had given the diagnosis. In a strange way, Rory could see that Riley wasn't scared, she was a fighter, and she fought every day through chemo, and radiation therapy, no matter how sick she became, the little girl remained optimistic.

"Daddy?" she whispered as Logan walked into her room.

"Hey beautiful" Logan smiled as he walked to his little girls bed and sat down beside her, "How are you feeling?"

"Tired" Riley gulped, she was short of breath, she was always short of breath these days.

"So what story do you want tonight?" Logan asked her, "I mean, we only have a couple more days until you get to go home, and then Christian is going to read you so many stories because he misses you like crazy"

"Why can't Christian come here?"

"Well, Christian has a cold, so the doctors don't want him to come here until he feels better, and he has medicine so with any luck, he can come in a couple of days, and then we bring you home" Logan explained, "So which story?"

"When are you and Mommy having the wedding?" Riley breathed, her breath becoming more and more laboured.

"Soon baby" Logan told her, recognizing how tired she was, "As soon as you are healthy we will have the biggest, best party"

"But I want it to be soon" Riley whispered, "That way I can see Mommy like a princess"

"Ok" Logan kissed her head, his heart breaking at her request. He and Rory had decided to postpone the wedding until Riley was at least in remission so that she could enjoy herself, the only thing holding them back was their daughter's health.

"I don't want a story" Riley told him as she closed her eyes, leaning up against him.

"You go to sleep baby" Logan told her, his voice shaking, "I'll sleep here tonight, with you"

Logan waited until Riley was asleep before he pulled out his phone and texted Rory to let her know he would be spending the night. He couldn't believe all of the things he had missed in her life, and now he was faced with the possibility that he would never have the chance to truly know his daughter.

_"Hey" Logan kissed Rory sweetly on the cheek as he arrived home from yet another business trip._

_"Hi" Rory smiled, relieved that he was home, she was exhausted._

_"Where are the kids?"_

_"Well, Christian is playing with Honor and Aly" Rory told him as she handed him a glass of scotch, "And Riley is down for a nap, but, she said her first word today!"_

_"No way?" Logan gave her a half smile, "What was it?"_

_"Chris" Rory told him, "She was playing with Christian and it just came out"_

_"Did you get it on tape?"_

_Rory shook her head._

_"We'll have to start taping more, that way I don't miss things"_

_"Or you could try to be home more often, one would think that is the more obvious way to remedy the situation"_

_"Ace, I'm working hard to give us a great life, a life that both of us want, and a life that both of us want for our kids" Logan finished his drink, "I thought we weren't going to fight about this anymore, especially since we had Ri"_

_"I'm not fighting Logan" Rory told him, becoming more and more annoyed, "You promised that you would be around more, you said that"_

_"I try Rory" Logan put his glass down, "But I am not superman, I can only be in one place at a time, and my business needs me"_

_"Your kids need you" Rory told him._

_"I'm going to see Riley" he shook his head before walking to the stairs and taking them two at a time._

_"Please don't wake her" Rory called from the kitchen._

_"Hey angel" Logan smiled at his 5 month old daughter, she was staring up at him with a smile on her face, "Mommy says you started talking today" he whispered as he lifted her out of the crib and held her close, "I've missed you beautiful, can you say Chris for me? Or Daddy"_

_Riley simply giggled as she bounced in her father's somewhat unfamiliar arms._

_"Come on, say Da-Da" Logan coaxed her as he kissed her forehead, "Okay, fine, don't say it, but promise you'll say it soon, and when I'm at home. I miss you so much when I'm gone" he set her back down in her crib and took a photo of her with his phone, "This way I can stare at you all day long while I'm working. You are never going to have a care in the world, you're the best baby ever, Daddy loves you so much"_

Logan shook his head as he thought of the promise he had made her, the one where he had promised to take care of her no matter what, obviously he hadn't lived up to that promise like he should have. If he had, he wouldn't be sitting in a hospital room with his daughter, just hoping that maybe, maybe he could be the one to go instead of her. He had lived a full life, he knew what it was to love and laugh and see the world. Riley hadn't had that chance yet, and Logan would give anything to make it happen.

xxxxxx

"Daddy I don't want more needles" Riley cried as the doctors wheeled her bed out of the hospital room she was in.

"Ri, listen to me" Logan bit his bottom lip to keep himself from crying, "You have to get the needles, and the sooner you get them, the sooner you will be able to come home, I know they hurt, but I promise to bring you an ice cream after, and then Mom is going to come and Christian can come because he is feeling better"

"Promise?" Riley sniffled as she extended her pinky finger to him.

"I promise" Logan locked his fingers with hers and squeezed, "You just be strong, I'll be waiting right here" he told her as they finished wheeling her out the door. The moment she was gone he broke down, he couldn't handle it, it was too much for him to bare, to think that he might lose his daughter, and all for no good reason.

"Hey" Colin looked at his crying friend as he walked in the door with an armful of presents.

"Hey" Logan wiped his eyes, "Sorry, I thought I was...I thought I was by myself"

"Don't apologize" Colin set the gifts down before he embraced his friend tightly, "She'll pull through, she's a Huntzberger, and she's got Gilmore blood in her, she will absolutely pull through"

"She's scared" Logan told him, "She's trying to be strong but she hates going to treatment, and tests, it hurts, she's just a little kid. She has a full life ahead of her"

"And she's going to get to live it" Colin assured his friend, "Logan this isn't your fault"

"I missed so much" Logan ran his hands through his hair, "I missed her first word, her first step, hell I was late for her first birthday"

"You can't change the past" Colin told him, "All you can do is be there now"

"You sound like a hallmark card"

"You know I'm right, she will still get a first day of school, and college, and prom, and boyfriends, you will walk that little girl down the aisle, we will all make sure of that"

"You can't promise that"

"I know, but I'm going to try, we all are"

xxxxxx

"How were her tests today?" Rory asked as she and Logan sat in bed.

"They were better, her white blood cells are looking better" Logan told her as he turned off the bedside table. "The doctor says if we stay on this track, she can come home, and then we just need to bring her in for chemo and radiation"

"Well thank god she has kicked that infection" Rory smiled, "My mom said Georgia was spending the night with her tonight"

"She arrived just as Ri came out of her last tests, Ri was so happy to see her" Logan explained as he pulled the duvet over his chest, "How is Christian?"

"He wishes he could see her"

"Has he gotten the green light from the pediatrician yet?"

"Tomorrow, he needs to be no cough, no fever, no nothing" Rory told him.

"Alright, and are you going to work next week? I know ABC called and they want you to try to come back whenever you feel ready"

"Last time I worked, we found out our daughter had cancer" Rory stared at him.

"Ace, this wasn't your fault" Logan kissed her gently, "You need to follow your dreams too, one night a week the kids are on me, Riley needs you to be as strong as possible, and that means following your dreams too"

"I'll call them tomorrow" Rory promised.

"I was thinking, because your Mom and Dad are going tomorrow, and we are all going as soon as Christian can, maybe we can talk about the wedding?"

"What about the wedding, we said we were going to postpone it until Riley was in remission"

"Ri said to me that she wants us to do it, she wants to see you dressed like a princess, she wants to be excited for something. I talked to the doctor, and he thinks that it would be good for her, and as long as she is in good health, she can go, and she can walk down the aisle, and she will have a great time"

"I'll talk to her doctor" Rory agreed.

"Mom? Dad" the door creaked open to reveal Christian standing there, tears staining his cheeks.

"Buddy, what's wrong?" Logan got out of bed and went to his son.

"I'm scared" Christian told him as Logan lifted him up.

"You're getting too big for me to lift you" Logan sighed as he walked him back over to the bed, "What are you scared about?"

"I miss Riley"

"Oh buddy" Logan sighed as he set him on the bed, "Riley has the best doctors in the world, Grandma and Grandpa made sure of that, and they are doing the best they can to make sure she gets better"

"Can I sleep in here?"

"Of course" Rory told him, he hadn't slept with them since he was about 4, but she knew this was stressful for him.

"Do you promise Ri is going to get better?"

"Christian" Logan sat down and looked him dead in the eyes, "If I could make you that promise, I would, but unfortunately that is a promise I don't know if I can keep, so we hope that Riley is going to be okay, but I can't make you that promise"

"Why? I thought you could fix anything?"

"Christian, I want you to listen to me, ok?" Logan looked to Rory who had tears streaming down her face, "Sometimes things happen, and we don't know why they happen, but they happen. And so it is possible that Riley will die, she is sick, and the doctors are doing everything they can, but they can't make us any promises"

"Is Aunty Paris helping?"

"You bet, Aunty Paris is doing everything she can, I promise you, we are doing our very best. Now, you need to go to sleep, that way the doctor can clear you tomorrow to see Ri"

xxxxxx

"Okay sweetie" Rory put her hand on Christian's back, "Remember what I said, it's scary, but that is Ri, and you can give her a hug and kiss and talk, but she gets tired really easily, so she might need to take a little rest"

"Can I make it worse?" Christian looked at her with worry.

"No" Rory shook her head, "You, because you are her big brother, you can only make things better, now go on, Grandma is in there now"

"Grandma Lorelai?" Christian whispered as he walked into his sister's room.

"Hey Christian" Lorelai smiled.

"Can I see Riley by myself?"

"Of course, is Mom outside?"

"Yes" Christian nodded as he stepped tentatively towards Riley's bed, "Hi"

"Hi"

"How do you feel?" Christian asked as he hopped onto the bed and sat beside her.

"I'm bored" Riley told him simply, "I'm not as tired today as yesterday. I'm glad you came to see me"

"I wasn't allowed before" Christian explained, "I listened to Mommy and Daddy, they said that you might be coming home soon"

"I hope so"

"Are there any other kids here? It smells like old people"

"I met one girl" Riley whispered, "She was 6, but she got to go home"

"I think you'll get to go home too. I brought a colouring book" Christian held up the bag he was holding, "Do you want to colour?"

Riley nodded as her big brother climbed onto the bed beside her, placing the bag between them so that they could each choose from various different crayons and markers and colouring sheets.

"He loves her so much" Lorelai smiled as she watched her grandchildren.

"They are best friends" Rory smiled, fighting back the tears, "I'm telling you Mom, I just need her to get better"

"They are doing everything they can Ror" Lorelai rubbed her back, "Where is Logan?"

"He is at work right now, he'll be back so we can all have dinner here"

"What has to happen if she goes home?"

"Well, Mitchum was talking to some medical tech firm, and they will set up a room in the house, probably one of the guest rooms in the basement, where we can have her medicine, and a nurse will come every day to take care of her, as long as she doesn't spike a fever, or have any infections, we can do that" Rory explained, "Logan wants to plan the wedding"

"Logan does?"

"Well, I guess when he spent the night here the other day, Riley told him that she wants the wedding, she wants to see me dressed up like a princess" Rory began to cry.

"Babe" Lorelai hugged her daughter, "You just need to let it out, it's going to work out"

"But Mom, I just...I'm so scared, we only just got our family back" Rory continued to sob, "I mean, things were so bad for a while, and I don't understand why we can't just have some happy"

_"Mommy?" Christian tugged on her shirt as he looked at the sea of guests attending his 7th birthday, "Where's Dad?"_

_"He's coming" Rory promised, "Why don't you go and play with your friends, I'll send Dad over as soon as he gets here"_

_"Okay" Christian nodded hesitantly as he ran off to play, leaving Rory to let out a long sigh as she pulled her cellphone out of her pocket. There were no messages from him, nothing indicating when he would get there, or if he was coming. They had almost 150 people in the backyard of their house, plenty of business associates, and family friends who brought their kids, as well as ridiculous gifts that no 7 year old needed._

**_Where are you? You're missing his party_**

_She quickly hammered out the text as she got herself a glass of wine, she took a long swig before she was interrupted._

_"Rory!" Sally Henson, one of the DAR ladies hugged her, "How are you darling? This is an amazing party, I brought my grandkids with me"_

_"Oh of course" Rory smiled, "Well, Christian only turns 7 once, so we wanted to make a big deal of it, we are so glad that you and your grandkids could come"_

_"So where is the birthday boy? Off with his father I presume?"_

_"No" Rory kept her smile plastered on her face, the society smile she had plastered long before they had gotten married, "Logan is on his way, and Christian just hopped into the bouncy castle with some friends"_

_"Oh, your husband isn't here?"_

_"He's on his way" Rory assured her, "Now if you'll excuse me, my daughter, Riley should be up from her nap any minute, I'm going to go get her ready" she smiled as she walked away, feeling her phone vibrate in her pocket._

**_Just leaving the office, will be home in a few. _**_Was his quick response, no apologies, no concern over the party he was missing, just the promise that he would be home soon, at which point Rory knew he would present Christian with an over the top gift to make up for the fact that he had missed 3/4's of the party, and had barely arrived in time to cut the cake. _

"You'll get more happy babe, I know you will get more happy" Lorelai whispered, bringing Rory out of her thoughts.

xxxxxx

"Rory" Lorelai called from outside of the dressing room.

"This feels weird" Rory laughed as she watched the consultant cinch the dress even more tightly.

"Mommy" Riley shouted, her voice still slightly raspy, "I want to see!"

"Alright, alright, I'm coming" Rory laughed. Riley had been out of the hospital for 3 days when she told her mother that she wanted to go shopping for the princess dress, and so Rory had obliged and they had decided to go to New York City to look for dresses. Riley still had 6 more rounds of chemotherapy, but things were looking up, they were by no means out of the woods, but Rory had a newfound faith that everything might end up alright.

"Wow" Riley grinned as she saw her mother, "You look like a fairy princess"

"A fairy princess" Lorelai smiled, "You look amazing, kid"

"So angel" Rory looked to Riley, "You've seen a lot of dresses today, which one was your favourite?"

"This one" Riley grinned, "It is perfect"

"Then this is it" Rory agreed, she was wearing an off the shoulder taffeta gown that was skin tight, not exactly what she had been thinking when Riley had told her she wanted a princess dress, but it made her happy nonetheless.

"It's so different than the one you have on in the pictures"

"That is because the first one was a big poofy dress" Rory laughed thinking back on the gown she had worn the first time she married Logan, it had been a big dress for an even bigger wedding, "Do you think Daddy will like this?"

"I know he will" Riley smiled, "I picked it"


	10. Chapter 10

a/n: sorry for the delay, the past few weeks have not gone as I planned! Please read and review, reviews make me happy. I really wanted to focus on Logan being a Dad in this chapter, because after all, not being involved is what caused him and Rory to split in the first place.

**Chapter 10**

"Ri, are you okay honey?" Rory looked at her daughter with concern, "I don't have to go if you want me to stay"

"You need to go" Riley shook her head, she was pale as a ghost and Rory could see that she was having trouble maintaining her footing.

"Logan" Rory sighed.

"It's okay" Logan assured her as he picked Riley up and kissed her temple, "We're going to be fine, it was just a rough morning" he stated, referring to the round of chemotherapy that Riley had undergone that morning.

"If you need anything" Rory looked at her daughter, "Or if you just want to talk, or you want me to come home, you just call"

"Ace" Logan looked at her, "We're okay, we're doing good, and you need to go work"

"I love you" she looked at Riley, "And you tell Christian that I will see him tomorrow"

"Bye mama"

"Bye baby"

xxxxxx

"So, Ri, what do you want for snack?" Logan looked at his daughter, taking a momentary break from staring at the contents of the fridge.

"Daddy" Riley whispered, "I want the lemon jello"

"Of course" Logan laughed as he grabbed the jello from the shelf, "How could I ever forget that you want the lemon jello"

"The other kinds are yucky" she stated simply as the phone began to ring.

"I'll be one second" Logan smiled as he handed her a ramekin full of jello as well as a spoon before grabbing the phone, "Logan Huntzberger" he answered, "Yes...the results are back?...Alright...yes I understand protocol is that we have to come in...Suzanne, you know I think you're the best nurse on the floor and Riley loves you so much...they are?...great, alright, well, I will see you in a couple of hours then, Riley just needs to eat and then I will have someone watch Christian while we come...thank you very much"

"Who that?" Riley asked, she was halfway through her jello by the time he got off the phone.

"That was the doctor" Logan explained, "You remember the tests we did a couple days ago?" she nodded, her focus remaining on the yellow goop in front of her, "Well, they are back, and the doctor wants to go over them with us. So I am going to call Uncle Finn, and see if he can come watch Christian, that way we can go see the doctor"

"Can't Christian come?"

"Honey this is serious" Logan sighed, he knew at her age, she couldn't really comprehend why some things were better without both kids there.

"He's my big brother" Riley still didn't look up from her jello, "He can protect me from all the scary monsters"

"Alright" Logan agreed, he knew the news was positive, the nurse had given him that much, but he didn't know exactly how good the news was, "If you want, Christian can come"

"Hey Daddy?"

"Hey Riley"

"Have you seen Mommy's princess dress?"

"Not yet, is it amazing"

"I picked it" Riley told him with a grin on her face, a grin that only a 4 year old could perfect.

"Well then it must be perfect" Logan told her as he kissed her forehead, "I love you"

"I love you too, silly" Riley laughed, "It's my birthday soon"

"Yes it is" Logan nodded, "Can I have a bite?" he opened his mouth as Riley put a tiny bit of jello on the spoon and directed it towards his mouth, "I think you're right, this is the best kind. Maybe we can have it at your birthday"

"Will I have hair for my birthday?" Riley asked, she had typically worn hats since she had started to lose her hair shortly into her treatments. The fact of the matter was that Riley was undergoing intense rounds of chemotherapy, and so her hair fell out quickly, but because she spent so much time in the hospital, surrounded by other kids with the same, or similar diseases, she never felt too out of place. In an effort of solidarity, Gigi had shaved her head as well, in an attempt not only to raise money for cancer research, but also to reassure her niece that she wasn't alone, and she wasn't different.

"I don't know" Logan told her honestly, "But maybe the doctor can give us an idea of that today"

"What if I get more sick?" Riley asked him quietly.

"Well, I don't think that will happen" he sighed, he hated when she got down on herself, he knew that even if she did not fully comprehend what cancer was, she did know that she felt sick, and that she was scared, and she knew that the grown ups around her were also scared, "But if it does, then we will fight, just like we have been"

"Tell me about my forever" Riley whispered, referring to the future that Logan and Rory would tell her about, on her worst days, to try to keep her positive.

"You are going to have the best forever" Logan smiled as he sat down on the barstool beside her, "Your forever is going to be full of chocolate covered strawberries" he told her because they were one of her favourite treats, "And you are going to be a dancer because we all know how much you love to dance, and you are going to have the prettiest pink tutu, and it will have sparkles all over it" she smiled and nodded as he told her, "And then you are going to go to school, and because you are so smart, you are going to be a doctor, or maybe the president, and one day you will meet someone who loves you so much, and he is going to make you a princess, because he will be your prince, and you will live happily ever after"

"What's the president?" Riley asked in regards to the new addition Logan had put in her forever story.

"The president gets to run the country, he makes all of the big decisions"

"Does he decide which jello flavours get to be made?"

"Oh yeah, all that important stuff, kiddo" Logan laughed, "Now, have you had enough to eat?"

"I had macaroni and then I had the jello"

"Did you have veggies?"

"It was the macaroni made of veggies, the special kind" Riley rolled her eyes.

"Alright then" Logan stood up, "Come on, I'm going to grab the sandwich in the fridge that Mom made for Christian, we will pick him up from soccer, and then we will go see your doctor, sound like a plan beautiful?"

"Plan!"

xxxxxx

**Hey Ace, the doctor called, some test results are back, the nurse said they sound positive, going in now, will call you w/ an update. Love you**

He texted her before he stepped out of his car.

"Alright baby girl" Logan lifted Riley out of her carseat, "Christian, come here and hold my hand please" he told his son as he heard the car door slam.

"Why do I have to hold your hand" Christian whined.

"Because your mother would never forgive me if anything happened to you, and I'm fairly certain I'm still your Dad, so I get to tell you what to do" Logan told him as he firmly grasped his son's hand while they made their way through the parking lot, "Once we're inside, you don't have to hold it"

"Ok"

"Daddy I'm tired" Riley told him, resting her head on his shoulder

"That's ok, if you want to a nap you can, or just rest your eyes for a little while. I can talk to the doctor" Logan assured her.

"You'r wiggling" Riley sighed, she was referring to his cellphone vibrating in his breast pocket.

"That's probably Mom" Logan told her as they approached the reception desk for the section of the hospital that was full of offices, the same place they had first been told that it was cancer. "Logan Huntzberger, my daughter, Riley, er...Lorelai Huntzberger has an appointment"

"The doctor will be with you in a moment Mr. Huntzberger" the receptionist/nurse nodded.

"Alright, let's see what Mom wanted" Logan smiled as he sat Riley down in a chair and then sat down beside her, Christian took the other side of Riley and held her hand tightly.

**Let me know how it goes. I knew I shouldn't have gone to New York, give the kids a kiss for me. I love you**

"What did Mom want?" Christian asked as he peaked his head past Riley.

"She wanted me to give you a big sloppy kiss" Logan smirked, "But I figured you might be too cool for kisses from your Dad"

"Grosse!"

"Exactly" Logan laughed, "How about you Ri, are you too cool for kisses from Daddy?"

"No" Riley giggled, even though she was pale and gaunt, her smile could still light up a room.

"Alright then" Logan laughed as he kissed her forehead firmly, "I love you so much baby" he looked at her and then turned to Christian, "You too buddy, you guys...you are the best thing that Mom and I have ever done"

xxxxxx

"Logan" the doctor smiled as he carried in Riley and Christian followed him in tow, "And how are the kids doing?"

"I'm tired" Riley sighed as Logan sat her down on the chair.

"Mike, how are you?" Logan smiled, based on the amount of time they spent at the office, they were on a first name basis with the doctor.

"Did you make my sister better?" Christian crossed his arms over his chest as he stared at the doctor, trying his best to be menacing.

"Well, I'm going to talk to your Dad about that, if you have a seat" Mike told him as he took a seat in his own chair and opened a file, "We have some positive results"

"How positive?" Logan asked, noticing that Riley was completely enthralled with a colouring page that the doctor had on his desk.

"Well, Riley's white blood cell's are much better, it seems that the bone marrow transplant really may have done the trick, obviously these are preliminary tests, and are no definite indication of what is to come, but this is the outcome we were hoping for"

"So do we need to continue with treatments?" Logan could tell the doctor was hesitant to give to much hope, but Logan couldn't help but feel relief at the idea that there might be light at the end of this incredibly long tunnel.

"Well we do, I want to finish with this round of treatments, and then we will do further testing to see exactly where we are" he explained, "Obviously if the tests continue on a path like this, it is likely that we might be in remission"

"Does that mean I would be better for my birthday?" Riley asked without even looking up from her colouring.

"Not quite for your birthday" the doctor told her, "but you will be getting a break from treatments over your birthday because you will be all done for this round"

"Oh" Riley nodded.

"This is good, angel" Logan kissed her head, "This is really, really good"

"So, I just wanted to let you know about her white blood cell count, and that we are making positive progress, I know previously...the news hadn't been so positive"

"Thank you very much doctor" Logan shook his hand as he stood up, "So we should go guys, I think this means we can stay up late, and have ice cream for dinner"

"Ice cream for dinner!?" Christian grinned.

"Don't tell your Mom" Logan laughed as he picked up Riley, "Thank you, very much Mike"

"My pleasure" he smiled as he rubbed Riley's shoulder, "Hopefully this is almost done"

"Thank you"

xxxxx

"Alright, chocolate sauce, or butterscotch?" Logan asked as he pulled both containers out of the fridge.

"BOTH!" Riley grinned as she ate from the bowl of m&m's in front of her.

"Both?" Logan laughed as he turned to Christian.

"Just chocolate"

"You are so my son" Logan set them down on the counter, and turned to Riley, "Seriously, both kinds of sauce" she nodded, her grin growing by the second, "Well, no question that you've got Gilmore blood. Grandma Lorelai would be so proud"

"Why?" Riley looked at him incredulously as she grabbed the butterscotch and poured it all over her ice cream.

"Because she loves sweets" Logan explained as he took the bottle from her, "That is more than enough"

"You said I could have lots!" Riley protested.

"I said you could have lots, not that you could give yourself a cavity" Logan passed her the pecans, "You love pecans"

"I want more butterscotch!"

"Well you have enough, and you have enough chocolate, so pick your toppings and eat up, I have to go call Mom"

"Will you tell her I say hi?" Christian asked as he ate his sundae.

"Of course" Logan agreed, "But you two have to be quiet, because it is almost 9:00, and both of you should already be upstairs"

"Finnne" Christian groaned as he swirled his ice cream.

"Thanks guys" Logan smiled as he walked into the den, and dialed Rory's number.

"Hello?" she answered as she looked off of the balcony with her glass of wine.

"Hey Ace" Logan was smiling, she could tell he was smiling, "How is New York?"

"Good...polluted" Rory mused, "How was the appointment?"

"It was great" Logan told her, again she could tell that he was smiling even more, "Mike says her white blood cell counts are good, he says its progress, and that they think we can take a break after this round of chemo, which is awesome"

"So she's doing better? Even after the infections and everything?"

"She's doing better, Ace" Logan laughed, "It looks like we might have some good luck"

"She's such a trooper" Rory laughed, "She reminds me of my Mom"

"She reminds me of you" Logan countered quickly.

"No" Rory told him, "My mom fought for everything, and now Ri has fought for her life...that girl is a Lorelai Gilmore"

"The kids say hi"

"Tell them I love them" Rory yawned, "I love you, are the kids still up? It's late"

"I know" Logan conceded, "But I wanted them to celebrate"

"Alright, night Logan"

"Love you Ace"

"Did you say hi to Mommy from me?" Christian asked as Logan stepped back towards the kids.

"I did" Logan nodded as he took the empty bowls from in front of them and put them in the dishwasher, "And you know what Mom asked? Mom asked why on earth I let you two stay up"

Christian's eyes widened as Logan began to laugh, "Is she mad?"

"No" he shook his head, "She's not mad, but now that you two are all jacked up on sugar, I'm locking you in your rooms and you have to try to sleep"

"Daddy I'm sleepy" Riley sighed.

"Alright, come on" Logan lifted her up and kissed her head, "Come on Chris"

"I can put myself to bed"

"I know you can" Logan agreed, "But your old man likes doing it, and sometimes you just need to be okay with that"

"I'll do it, I promise to brush my teeth!"

"Ok" Logan surrendered, "But I'm coming in to say goodnight after your sister is in bed" he told him as he began walking towards the stairs, "Get going Christian"

"Why doesn't he want your help?" Riley asked as Christian ran past them to make it to the stairs.

"Well" Logan laughed, "Because as boys get bigger, they want their parents to help them less, and less with things. So Christian just wants to do things on his own"

"I'm never going to do that" Riley told him.

"Excellent" Logan laughed, "You're going to be my little princess forever?"

"Yes"

"We have a deal" Logan kissed her head as they got to the top of the stairs, "So, princess, your birthday is coming up, what do you think you want?"

"I want to have a princess party" Riley told him.

"Didn't you have a princess party last year?" Logan asked, receiving a nod in return, "Ok, so we want two princess parties?"

"I love princesses" Riley informed him as he set her down on the bed.

"Get your pajamas" Logan told her as she meandered over to her bedside table which housed all of her pajamas, "So what is at a princess party?"

"Ponies"

"Were there ponies last year?" Logan had missed the previous party because he and Rory weren't on speaking terms, he knew from photos that his parents had sent him that the party was princess themed, but he didn't quite remember any ponies. Ava shook her head in response to his question as she pulled on her Cinderella pajamas, "Alright, brush your teeth, and I will pick a couple of books to read, ok?"

"I don't want stories today" Riley told him as she went into her bathroom, "I'm just sleepy"

Logan let out a long sigh, he hated that treatment knocked her out like this, but on the flip side, they had received good news from the doctor. Sure he hadn't said remission, but it was progress, they were winning the battle, and if it left her a little bit exhausted at the end of the day, that was better than the opposite, "Alright" he called as he heard the water running, "I'm going to check on Christian, when I get back you better be in bed". He couldn't believe how quickly the kids were growing up, he couldn't believe how much he had missed, there was no need for work to have ever taken over his life the way it did.

"You in bed?" he asked as he cracked the door to Christian's room open.

"Yes" Christian told him as he saw Logan's head peak into the door, "I'm in bed, Dad"

"Alright, I love you buddy" Logan smiled as he thought back to when they had brought Christian back from the hospital, everything had been so different then. He and Rory had been so different.

_"Alright, alright, be careful" Rory grinned as she looked down at her newborn baby boy, he was perfect._

_"I am being careful" Logan told her, holding up the video camera to catch all of the moments that they were sharing._

_"Alright Christian" Rory smiled as she brought him into the nursery, it was painted a soft blue, and had a sailing theme throughout, "This is your room Christian, it has lots of toys, and books, and a comfy crib, you're going to love it" she smiled as she set him in his crib. The infant took a moment to take in his surroundings, looking up at the ceiling, he was only 3 days old when he came home, but Rory could tell he was absorbing everything. He was a deep thinker, that much was clear._

_"Ace, come here" Logan smiled from several paces behind her._

_"He's home" Rory smiled as she embraced her husband._

_"We have a son" Logan laughed as he kissed her gently, letting the camera drop to the floor._

_"He's perfect" Rory told him._

_"I know" Logan agreed. "Do you think the paint in here is too bright?"_

_"No" Rory shook her head, still leaning against Logan while she stared at her son, "This" she looked from Christian to Logan, "This is what I want life to be like forever"_

Logan shook his head as he closed the door, he had ruined that promise of forever, even if it was only temporary, the perfect forever that Rory had so desperately wanted was out of the question, now all he could do was fix his mistakes.

"Alright Ri" Logan walked back into her room, surprised to find her already in bed and asleep, he walked to her bedside and gave her a kiss on the cheek, "Sweet dreams"


	11. Chapter 11

A/N: Thank you all for your patience, this is just a fun chapter, full of family, and love. The next chapter will just be a continuation of fun! YAY! Again, I still do not own Gilmore Girls :(

**Chapter 11**

"Logan!" Rory laughed as he kissed her passionately, "Logan" she repeated as his kisses trailed down her neck.

"Ace, I've missed you"

"It's been a day" Rory wiggled out of his grip, "Where are our kids?"

"Christian is at school, it's Friday, and your Mom took Riley out for a birthday shopping trip to prep for her upcoming party"

"I should probably get all of that together" Rory groaned, breaking what had been an intimate moment.

"It's already done" Logan informed her.

"Already done?"

"I did it, this morning actually. Talked to Ri, she wants a princess party, so there will be fairies, and princesses and princes, and a bouncy castle, and a really pink cake, and pink everything, and the girls will have tiaras, the boys will have crowns. There will be dress up, and story time, and Ri will have a throne" Logan told her.

"You did it" Rory let a smile grow on her face, Logan had never before been involved in the kids birthday parties. He always pawned that off on Rory and simply signed the cheque when it was done.

"I did it" Logan kissed her again, "Does that mean I get a prize?" he held her hips close to him.

"I guess" Rory smiled against his lips, putting her arms around his neck.

"Wanna go upstairs?"

"Yes" Rory grinned, tightening her grip around his neck while he grabbed her hips tightly to pick her up, "Logan! Logan!" she squealed, "You haven't done this in years!"

"I know" Logan agreed as he planted soft kisses along her jaw line, "I'm making up for lost time, Ace"

"Things really are different this time, aren't they?" Rory asked hesitantly.

"Yes Ace, things are different" Logan assured her as he made his way up the stairs, "How was work?"

"Work was good, I missed the kids, and you"

"We missed you too" Logan smirked as he pushed the bedroom door open.

"Logan I feel like you are trying to take advantage of me"

"No" Logan kissed her passionately as he set her down on the bed, "I'm trying to make love to my wife"

xxxxxx

"So you're sure you've ordered the cake?" Rory looked at her husband skeptically as they waited for both of their kids to return.

"Cake, ordered"

"And you put the deposit on the bouncy castle?"

"Yes"

"And you made sure to do background checks on the entertainment? Anyone who is around the kids"

"Yes, HPG security took care of all of that" Logan assured her.

"And you hired the caterer? The one who has the list of all the acceptable food?"

"The caterer who's list is up in the office and we use for everything, yes"

"You really thought of everything" Rory smiled.

"I even got her a present" Logan looked at her smugly, proud of himself for passing all of her tests.

"Decorations?"

"I ordered balloons, and then I made sure we have centre pieces, they are going to be princess themed. I think I even took care of a tent, that way the food isn't all outside, and the tent is even shaped, like a castle. I have everything covered Ace, you just need to show up" Logan kissed her, "Just don't be late, I hate when you're late for these things"

"Yes because I am so typically late" Logan laughed as the garage door opened, he could only assume it was Lorelai coming in.

"You two better be decent because I have an adorable 4 year old coming in!" Lorelai shouted as she came in from the garage.

"I'm almost 5!" Riley protested as she ran into the house ahead of Lorelai, "Mommy!" she squealed as she saw Rory walking towards her from the kitchen.

"Hello gorgeous" Rory laughed as she lifted her up, "How are you feeling today? Full of energy I see which I assume means Grandma Lorelai gave you lots of candy and other bad food?" Rory smiled at her mother who was making her way into the house.

"Guilty as charged" Lorelai laughed as she set down her pile of bags, "This girl can shop, she is just like her Grandma Lore, and her Aunty Georgia, and her Aunty Honor"

"It's hereditary" Logan laughed as he popped into the foyer, "Lot's of bags, want me to take them upstairs Ri?"

"Yes please" Riley nodded as she barely took her eyes off of Rory, "Grandma can you stay for dinner?"

"Well with an offer like that, how could I refuse? I just need to call Grandpa to tell him, alright?"

"Ok" Riley turned her attention back to her mother, "Were you on the tv?"

"I was on the tv" Rory nodded as she walked back into the den, "How about you? How was your doctors appointment?"

"I don't have to be sick on my birthday!" Riley grinned.

"I heard" Rory kissed her forehead as they sat down, "And Daddy says he chose everything for your princess party"

Riley nodded as she put her head on Rory's chest, enjoying the sense of comfort, "Make sure he doesn't mess it up" she whispered.

"Oh don't you worry baby" Rory laughed as she stroked Riley's hair, "I will check everything out before hand and I am sure Daddy did a great job"

"Look who I found" Lorelai smiled as she led Christian into the room.

"Hey Christian" Rory smiled as she continued to sit with Riley, "Come sit with me?"

"When did you get home?" Christian asked as he sat directly next to Rory, leaning against her.

"Well" Rory smiled as she wrapped her free arm around Christian, watching as Lorelai sat down on another chair, "I got home a few hours ago"

"Well if the whole gang isn't here" Logan smiled as he saw his entire family siting together, "What did I miss?"

"Mommy promised to make sure you didn't mess up my birthday party"

"You think I would mess it up?" Logan pretended to be insulted.

"Not on purpose Daddy" Riley reassured him, "But on accident, sometimes you forget things"

"Not anymore" Logan kissed her forehead before offering Christian a high five, "New and responsible Daddy has been way better lately, hasn't he?"

"I guess" Rory smiled before putting her hands over Rory's ear, she leaned forward and whispered, "Still double check"

xxxxx

"You're sure he didn't mess up?" Riley looked up at her mother as they walked out into the backyard. It was tented and over the top, it looked a lot like all of the other parties that Rory had thrown for the kids over the years. All of the over the top events that had everything a kid could ever dream of, and cost more than anyone should have ever spent on a party.

"It looks like he did great, why don't you run around and look at everything before your friends start coming" Rory suggested as she too took in the particulars of the event. There was the huge tent, shaped like a castle, there was a giant, pink bouncy castle that Riley was tentatively stepping into. She could see the stations set up for face painting, and dress up. It looked like he had really pulled it off.

"Making sure I didn't screw it up?" Logan laughed as he and Christian walked out of the house.

"It looks great" Rory admitted before turning to her son who had a scowl on his face, "What's wrong?"

"Why do I have to wear a stupid suit?" Christian crossed his arms over his chest.

"Because your sister is having a princess themed party" Rory told him, "And we thought you would rather wear a nice suit than a dress up one. All of your friends who Riley invited will be wearing one too"

"Can I go in the pool?"

"If when your friends come you guys want to go in the pool, fine, but when it comes to cake, you have to be out" Rory compromised with him, "Now go play with Ri in the bouncy castle"

"I'm not a baby" Christian groaned, rolling his eyes.

"Christian, drop the attitude and go play with your sister, it is her birthday" Rory told him firmly while he began to stomp across the yard.

"He is so your son" Logan laughed, "Attitude and all"

"His attitude he gets from you" Rory protested, "His calm temperament and love of books, those he most certainly gets from me. And Riley" Rory nodded to Riley who she could see giggling as she jumped, "Riley Huntzberger is just like her father, carefree, and smart, and amazing"

"Don't forget good looking" Logan put his arm around Rory's shoulder, "But she isn't carefree, I wish she was, I wish there was more I could do to protect her"

"She's doing better though" Rory rested her head on his shoulder while they watched the kids, "I mean, the doctor says her scans are coming up clean, and that we can take a few weeks off, that is progress Logan"

"I know" Logan nodded, "I just wish there was more we could have done to help her, I mean, what would have made this never happen"

"Logan" Rory lifted her head from his shoulder and kissed him gently, "We're doing everything we can, and you...through all of this, you have been the most amazing husband, and father, anyone could ever ask for"

"I'm just making up for lost time" Logan lamented, "If I hadn't screwed it up so badly the first time, maybe none of this would be happening"

"That is ridiculous" Rory told him simply, "Is that what you're wearing?" she asked, giving his toned figure a once over, he was wearing a pair of grey dress pants and a white button down shirt, his blonde hair was lightly speckled with greys, and he looked tanned, he looked hot.

"I thought I had to wear at least something that resembled a suit, after all it is a princess party" Logan shrugged, "Is something wrong with what I'm wearing?"

"Go put jeans on, the dress up is for the kids. We are adults, we get to wear normal clothes. You wear suits all day in the office" Rory told him, "You go change first and then I will change, people should be arriving any minute.

"Thanks Ace" Logan kissed her gently.

"Hurry up" Rory told him as he walked towards the house and she headed to the bouncy castle, shouting as she approached the kids, "So what do you think Ri, did Dad do a good job?"

"This is so much fun!" Riley giggled as she continued to jump.

"Alright, come out guys" Rory told them, "Let's go see what else Daddy has done"

"I want to jump" Riley pouted in a way that only a 5 year old could, "And I'm 5 now, doesn't that mean I can jump"

"You can jump when all of your friends come" Rory assured her as Christian bolted out of the bouncy castle and Riley walked slowly behind him into her mothers arms.

"Can I at least open a present?" Riley continued to pout.

"Lorelai Honor" Rory warned her, "You need to quit pouting, you are a lucky girl"

"Fine" Riley let out a long, exasperated sigh, one that she only could have learned from her mother, "Where did Daddy go? He isn't going to miss it, is he?"

"No he isn't going to miss it" Rory assured her as she walked towards the tent, "Daddy is in the house changing, now what do you think of this beautiful tent?" Rory smiled as they walked in, everything was a shade of pink, all slightly different but very much the same, Rory was surprised that Logan had pulled this off, she was surprised that everything was so perfect.

"It's like a princess would have" Riley grinned, "Put me down please" she instructed Rory and as Rory set her on the ground, Riley wandered over to all of the tables to look at the centre pieces and the intricate details. "Mommy! I have a throne!" Riley giggled as she ran to her seat at the front of the room.

"Wow" Rory smiled as she watched Riley take it all in, this was one of Rory's favourite things about being a parent, the fact that everything was always so shiny and new to her kids, no matter what was wrong, no matter what else was going on, it was a refreshing way to see the world.

"Daddy!" Riley shouted as Logan walked into the tent wearing a pair of dark jeans and a button down Burberry shirt, a much more relaxed look than he had previously been sporting. "It's perfect! It's just like what a princess would have! How did you know how to be a princess!" Riley grinned as she ran towards her father, clearly overjoyed that he had managed to pull this off.

"I had a little help" Logan admitted, "Aunty Honor and Aunty Georgia helped me make some of the big decisions. Happy birthday baby girl" he bent down and kissed her forehead, "I have a special present for you, and I want you to open it before all of your friends get here, is that ok?"

"What is it?" Riley asked.

"It wouldn't be a surprise if I told you" Logan smiled as he handed her a tiny dark blue box, "Now, this is for when you are older, but I wanted you to have it now because it is so special"

"What is it?" Riley repeated as she looked at the blue velvet box, gasping as she opened it, "Daddy it's so sparkly"

"I know it is" Logan laughed as she took the necklace out of its box, "This was my Grandma's" he explained, "And it was very special to her, and she told me that one day, I would have a little girl to give it to, and that little girl is you"

"I love it Daddy" Riley grinned as she hugged him, still holding the diamond encrusted locket in her hand.

"If you open it up" Logan explained, taking the locket from her and opening it up, "There is a picture of you and I on one side, from right after you were born, and on the other side is a picture of your Great Grandma"

"Wow" Riley smiled, "I'm so little"

"Yes you were" Logan kissed her cheek, "Happy birthday"

"Thank you Daddy" Riley then turned to her mother, "Thank you Mommy"

"This one is special from Daddy, you get the rest of your presents tonight" Rory smiled at her.

"Alright babe, let's put this on you" Logan told her as he fitted the long chain around her neck, latching it at its tightest setting, "You make sure you show Grandma Shira and Aunty Honor when they come"

"Ok" Riley nodded, "I'm going to go show Chrissy"

"You go show Christian, but don't call him Chrissy, you know he doesn't like that" Logan laughed.

"That was beautiful" Rory smiled as Riley darted out of the tent.

"I wanted her to have it" Logan shrugged, "She is amazing"

"Well you did a really good thing" Rory assured him, "But our guests will be arriving any minute, so I am going to go into the house, and make sure the front door is locked, and that it is obvious to go around back, and you can wait here for our esteemed guests while I change"

"They are a bunch of 5 year olds" Logan laughed, I would hardly say they are esteemed"

"They are your daughter's friends, and our family, and business partners, and colleagues, and more people than I can count are coming to the house today" Rory told him as she turned on her heels to walk towards the house, "Don't burn anything down!" she called behind her.

Logan laughed as he took note of the intricacies of the party, sure his sister had helped him, but all in all, he could honestly say that he had thrown a party for his daughter, and she loved it so far, now all he needed were guests, he looked at his watch, knowing they would be arriving any minute.

"Hey baby brother" Honor came from behind him with her two kids, Aly and Tyler running off to find their respective cousins.

"Hon" Logan turned and hugged his sister, "First to arrive, thank god"

"Well I must say" Honor smiled as she took stock of her surroundings, "You seem to have pulled it together"

"I think I might have done it"

"Where is the gift pile?" Honor asked, holding up a bag full of presents, "And Josh has something else she can open later"

"Table is right over there" Logan spun around to point her in the direction of the nearly empty gift table, "Josh, how are you?"

"Oh, you know, barely alive" Josh shrugged as he handed him an envelope, "I hate birthday party season"

"Well my friend" Logan patted him on the back, "That is because you are used to normal birthday parties, not the three ring circus which is a Huntzberger birthday party"

"You're right about that" Josh agreed, "I need to find the bar"

"Look for the men in suits!" Logan laughed as he went off to find his niece and nephew, "Hey guys" he smiled as he approached them.

"Hi Uncle Logan" Aly smiled as she hugged him tentatively.

"That was quite the paltry hug" Logan commented, "Too cool for your Uncle Logan?"

"No" Aly blushed as Logan gave Tyler a high five.

"Did you two see the birthday girl?" he asked as they both nodded, "Alright, well Ty, find Christian, I know he is dying for some company, and Aly, you keep playing with my birthday princess, alright?"

"Ok" Aly nodded as she returned her attention to Riley who was happily having her face painted.

"Come show me when you're done" Logan smiled at Riley as he walked back towards where he could see his parents, and in-laws all arriving at the same time, "Jesus" he groaned, wishing that Rory were out there with him, apparently this is the part of the party that he didn't really mind missing for all of those years.

"Logan!" Emily grinned as she hugged him tightly, "You look so...casual, I didn't know this party was so casual!"

"Well it is for a 5 year old" Logan shrugged as he kissed her cheek, "You look wonderful Emily"

"Oh thank you dear" Emily smiled as she ran off to find the kids, "Richard make sure you leave the cheque inside, and the present on the table" she called behind her.

"Of course dear" Richard nodded as he shook Logan's hand, "Good to see you son"

"You too, sir" Logan nodded as he took yet another envelope from him, "Chris, Lorelai"

"Logan, hey" Chris patted him firmly on the shoulder, "We figure you are covered in the cheque department, so we just have gifts"

"You didn't have to" Logan protested, "Lorelai already took Ri on such an amazing shopping trip"

"She's our granddaughter, this is our god given right" Chris laughed as he moved past Logan and headed for the bar, leaving Lorelai to chat with Logan.

"It looks like you've done good" Lorelai commented as she hugged him, "Where is Ror? Chris lied, I do have a cheque. I feel like I need to fit in, obviously we are the poor grandparents, but still, I want to try"

"Lorelai" Logan laughed, "She's 5"

"I know, but still, where is my daughter?"

"She's inside, I think she's probably getting a good chuckle out of watching me flounder out here while the guests arrive. It's a sick and twisted punishment, so I have no doubt that she is loving it"

"Alright, well I'll try to wheel her outside, and if you give me those envelopes I will throw them in the office while I'm inside"

"You're the best mother in law a man could ever ask for" Logan told her dramatically.

"Music to my ears darling" Lorelai winked as she headed in the opposite direction of the party.

"Mom, Dad" Logan nodded as he embraced both of his parents, "Good to see you both, thank you for coming"

"Well it looks like Rory certainly has outdone herself" Shira smiled pleasantly as she handed her son yet another envelope.

"Actually, this one is all me" Logan told her somewhat proudly.

"Wow" Shira smiled, "Well, it is good to see you taking such an active role. And where is Rory?"

"Ror is just inside changing" Logan told them.

"How is her work?" Mitchum asked, "I have seen her on air, she is a natural, and I have heard glowing reviews from her colleagues"

"Well she loves it" Logan told him, "And I think she mentioned last night that she was working on another book"

"Another book" Shira nodded, pursing her lips slightly, "Yet another tell all of her divorce?"

"No mom" Logan shook his head, "I'm sure if you ask her she would love to tell you, but all of your grandkids are here, and you should probably go say hi"


	12. Chapter 12

A/N: I do apologize for the delay, however I am super busy with life right now (ughhhh), but here it is :)

**Chapter 12**

"It looks like you're surviving" Rory laughed as she practically jumped on Logan's back as he watched the kids interacting from a far.

"You were watching from the house" Logan stated as he pulled her in front of him and kissed her gently, "Enjoying watching me struggle?"

"Well you've never had the pleasure of dealing with all of this" Rory shrugged, "I wanted to see how you would handle it all"

"Well, so far, so good" Logan told her, intertwining his hand in hers, "It's kind of funny"

"What is?" Rory looked at him with a broad smile.

"We're divorced"

Rory thought about it for a moment and then let out a long laugh, "But we're in a better place than the last 5 years of our marriage was" Rory told him, squeezing his hand, "So, let's go find the kids and try to navigate the waters which are corporate leadership. You will be astounded by the things people will talk about at kids birthday parties"

"Of course" Logan nodded as Rory began pulling him in the direction of where she could see Riley laughing with a friend who was having her face painted.

"She's having a blast" Rory noted.

"She deserves it" Logan agreed, "No one deserves it more than that little girl"

"Well either way, she has an amazing father, and I have an amazing boyfriend" Rory told him with a wink as they got closer to the kids, smiling at other kids as they passed. There were easily over 150 guests at the party including parents and the various nannies that some of the parents brought with them.

"Mommy, look at Sydney's cheek!" Riley pointed to her friend as her parents got close to her.

"Wow" Rory agreed, "That is quite the butterfly" Rory told the little girl as she took a closer look, "Are you girls having fun? Did Dad do a great job?"

"Yes!" Riley grinned while her friend nodded, "Thank you Daddy, you can plan all my birthday parties"

"Let's not get too far ahead of ourselves" Logan laughed, "But make sure you see all of your friends"

"Ok" Riley nodded, "After Sydney is done, we are going to play with my friends from school" she explained, referring to the preschool she was attending before she had to begin treatments.

"Thanks babe" Rory smiled, "I'm going to go find all of your Grandparents, and Aunty Paris"

"Not our parents" Logan groaned as he followed her to the group of adults who were hovering near the gift table.

"Some party" Chris laughed as he raised his glass to Logan, "Someone certainly is turning into Mr. Mom"

"What can I say, maybe publishing isn't my calling" Logan shrugged, "Maybe it's party planning, I mean that would explain my failed marriage" he laughed as he wrapped his arm tightly around Rory.

"Well son, everyone seems to be having fun" Shira stated with a smile, "And your father certainly didn't plan any of your birthday parties"

"No kidding" Logan laughed, "If he had they would have been in a boardroom"

"Funny" Mitchum mused, "Where is Christian I haven't seen him?"

"He is around here somewhere" Logan scanned the children in front of him, "He is right by the pool with his friends"

"I'll go say hello" Mitchum told him, "Shira would you like to come?"

"Of course" Shira smiled at Logan and Rory, "Rory you must tell me all about your book, Logan says you are working on another"

"Of course" Rory nodded, "Maybe after the party" she then turned to Logan as she saw that Mitchum and Shira were out of ear shot, "You told her about the book?"

"I'm sorry" Logan chuckled, "It came out, and I mean, its true, you are working on another book"

"And you told your mother?" Rory continued to stare at him, "I mean, she was so supportive of the first book...if I recall there was one drunken night where she called and told me she had purchased 5 copies...and burned them"

"Dad was supportive" Logan shrugged with a devilish grin, "Huntzberger publishes your books Ace, you are an amazing author, and I am sure that this book will be just as good as the last, and my mom will probably not want to burn it. I can't make that promise because I think most of my family could use extensive psychiatric observation, but, maybe she won't"

"Oh thanks" Rory laughed as she continued to watch the kids, "This is almost reassuring"

"Until you realize who's coming up behind us" Logan whispered in her ear as heard a familiar grunting behind him, "Kevin, how are you?"

"Logan" the man, Kevin, approached him, he was wearing a pair of khakis and a polo and looked incredibly uncomfortable, "You aren't usually at these things"

"Changed man" Logan extended his arm to him, "How is business?"

"Well, life after Huntzberger is different" Kevin told him, "But good. Promising, I have some good avenues to look at" he turned to Rory, "Good to see you Rory"

"You too, thank you for coming" Rory smiled, she knew that sometime during their split, Logan had forced Kevin to resign from HPG, Kevin reportedly had a drinking problem, but unfortunately their kids had grown attached to each other, which meant that Kevin and his third wife, Mindy, always attended the functions, "Where is Mindy? I'm sure she has a great pair of shoes to show me! Or a new diamond" Rory excused herself as Kevin pointed to his wife who was talking to another group of women.

"How is work going?" Logan asked his old friend honestly, he hadn't wanted to force Kevin out, but when it started effecting business, he had no other choice after Kevin refused to seek treatment, "I heard you were working for Harper Collins?"

"Absolutely" Kevin nodded, "And I am off the sauce, everything is good. How about you? You seem to be rather at home"

"Well I'm sure you've heard that Rory and I got back together" Logan nodded, "Things are going well. Riley's treatments are done"

"Riley's treatments?" Kevin looked at him with an incredibly puzzled look on his face.

"Riley...she has leukemia" Logan reminded him, "You came to a fundraiser we hosted for the children's hospital last month Kev"

"Oh" Kevin nodded, "Yeah, I remember that, I ... wow, I'm sorry. I didn't realize...Riley, wow"

"My thoughts exactly" Logan agreed, "But she's doing well, so everything for me is going as good as it can"

"I'm glad" Kevin nodded.

"Are you really good?" Logan asked, concerned for his old friend.

"I'm good" Kevin assured him, "I'm going to go check on the kids, I think our boys are in the pool"

"That means my Dad is watching them" Logan laughed, "Good seeing you though" Logan clapped his hand on Kevin's shoulder, "Keep in touch"

xxxxxx

"Daddy!" Riley giggled as she sat on Logan's lap while the giant metallic cake was wheeled out. The cake was designed to look like a giant tiara, it was incredibly intricate and far too extreme for a 5 year olds birthday, but it is what Riley had wanted, "I love it"

"Happy birthday" Logan kissed her head while the rest of her friends sang happy birthday to her in the tent where they were eating.

"Make a wish" Rory squeezed Logan's hand as she watched them, Christian was grinning on the other side of his sister while she blew out her candles.

"What did you wish for?" Christian asked her.

"I can't tell you" Riley told him obviously as the crowd applauded her for blowing out her candles, "If I tell, it might not come true"

"I guess" Christian agreed as the cake was wheeled away to be served almost as quickly as it came.

"Alright" Logan maneuvered Riley off of his lap so that he could stand up, "Hi everyone" Logan raised his voice to gain the attention of the room, "Rory, Christian, Riley and I just wanted to take a moment to thank you all for coming. This is such a big day, I can hardly believe that our little Riley is 5" he laughed, "I'm sure you all remember more of these birthday's than I do" he looked to Rory who shook her head as she chuckled, "Anyway, we appreciate that you could all make it, and we are so blessed and fortunate to have such an amazing family and amazing friends. So dig in, this cake looks awesome" Logan raised his glass and turned to his family, watching as the adults in the room raised their glasses as well, "Everyone have an amazing time"

"Daddy why did you make that speech?" Riley asked as Logan sat back down.

"Well because you need to say thank you to everyone for coming" Logan explained, "Anyway, eat up" Logan told her as a waiter brought them all a slice of cake.

xxxxxxx

It was hours later when all of the guests were gone, and thankfully everything was cleaned up, Rory had to admit she loved the fact that she didn't have to clean any of these parties, they were a disaster. Even though the life she was living now was far from the life she had lived when she was a child, it was a life she loved, and she tried to keep her kids grounded, despite the fact that they were very fortunate, they needed to understand that they were fortunate, and that their father, and grandfather had worked very hard to give them a great life.

"What are you thinking, Ace?" Logan asked after he finished putting Riley to bed, he glanced at his watch, "If you're writing, I can put Christian to bed too"

"He has another hour doesn't he?" Rory asked, staring intently at her computer screen.

"He has another 20 minutes" Logan laughed, he loved watching her work. She was so focused, so intent on what she was doing that nothing else would matter to her in those moments, "Can I see what you're working on?"

"I'll e-mail you the chapter once it's done" Rory assured him, "Would you mind grabbing me a drink? Gin and tonic?"

"Coming right up" Logan nodded, leaving the library where Rory always wrote, as he passed the door to the basement where Christian was playing video games, he opened it slightly, "Christian you have 20 minutes" he shouted, only to hear a grunt in response.

Rory chuckled to herself as she heard the interaction and returned to the computer screen. She had been working on the book for a few weeks now, she hadn't really told anyone much about it. Except for her mother who had seemed cautiously optimistic about the choice. She typically worked on the book while she was working, or when the kids were in bed, but since the party, since seeing everyone in her life come together, for Riley's birthday much less, she had wanted to do nothing but write.

_Chapter 3 - The Trouble With Kids_

_When you have a child, you immediately feel this sense of responsibility. As a mother, I remember this feeling of hopelessness when I held my son for the first time. It was a feeling of terror when after only 12 hours they put me in a wheelchair, sent me to the curb, and waited for a black sedan to pick me up. How on earth could these doctors, individuals who had participated in years of schooling in order to take care of us in our times of medical crisis, they had decided I was capable of taking home a little human being? But this little human being, this perfect, angelic little boy I was holding, sitting in a wheelchair, waiting for my husband at the curb of the hospital, he was ours. _

_The moment I realized that he was ours, that he was going to be my responsibility for the rest of my life, everything changed. The fact of the matter is, it became my responsibility to watch out for him, and later to watch out for our daughter. I did my part, I watched out for them, I made sure everyone who came to the house was washing their hands, and I forced them to wear elbow pads when they learned how to ride a bike. So how did I end up here? How did I find myself in a hospital, learning that my daughter, my precious daughter had cancer. What had I done wrong? Did I forget to use sanitizer? Or should I really have bought organic all the time? Maybe I should have never let her have dairy or sugar or gluten or anything that tastes remotely good. Maybe I should have put her in a bubble and never let her leave the house. All of these were options, most of which would be insane to any regular person. My mother however, bestowed upon me wisdom which suggested that there was nothing I could do to keep my kids safe all of the time, unfortunately some things just happen, and my daughter getting cancer was one of those things._

_The feeling of hopelessness you have when your child is sick, whether it be a fever, the flu, or the feeling I had when my daughter was diagnosed with cancer are all different versions of the same thing. The horrible feeling in the pit of your stomach when something is wrong, it doesn't go away. Through the treatments and the late nights, and the tears, as a mother you just feel this sense of panic, and it never goes away. But then, there are moments, moments where you watch your little girl laughing and being happy, and enjoying her 5th birthday party, and in that moment, you truly believe that everything is going to be alright._

"How's it going Ace?" Logan laughed as he reentered the library, "You need to come to bed, or at least back away from the computer"

"I'm having a moment of clarity" Rory laughed.

"Well, does that mean you can let me see?" Logan prodded as he took a seat on the edge of her desk.

"You realize you are sitting on a $15,000 desk?" Rory groaned as she shut her computer and stood up.

"Yes, I do" Logan laughed as she walked towards him, "What is it about?"

"Life" Rory shrugged, "The way things change, the way things are" she continued as she wrapped her arms around his neck, "Right now I'm talking about the kids, and the ridiculous fear that comes with having children"

"I couldn't believe they let us take them home from the hospital" Logan admitted as he held her close to his body, "I mean, they let two people come home and live with us, that has got to be a sick and twisted joke. We could ruin them, well, you couldn't, but I could"

"You are a great father" Rory told him as she relaxed against his chest, "Everything was great today. You did a really good job"

"Well, party planning is never going to be my forte" Logan admitted, "But it was nice, it was nice to do something for the kids, and it was nice to see you relaxed for a change. If I didn't know better I would say you liked some of those other crazy Mom's"

"They aren't crazy" Rory laughed, "Are we going to bed, or what?"

"I was thinking that we could go to bed, and not even do a little bit of sleeping" Logan kissed her sweetly.

"I thought you had meetings tomorrow?"

"I do have meetings tomorrow"

xxxxx

"Christian are you ready for school? You need to go" Rory called as she nursed her coffee, the nanny was taking him to school that morning so that Rory could take Riley to another doctor's appointment.

"Where's Dad?" Christian pouted.

"He's at work" Rory told him as she stood up, "Do you have all of your homework?"

"Yes" Christian nodded.

"Is everything alright?" Rory asked as she approached her son, placing her coffee on the counter.

"Yes" Christian nodded once more.

"Christian, I feel like you might be lying to me" Rory asked him again.

"I don't want to go to school" Christian huffed.

"Why not? You love school?"

"Because the other kids are mean" Christian shrugged.

"How are they mean?"

"I want to talk to Dad"

"Christian if you want to talk to Dad I will have him come pick you up from school, but you have to go today unless you can give me a good reason why not" Rory explained as she handed him his backpack.

"Fine" Christian rolled his eyes as he turned on his heels and stomped towards the door.

"I love you" Rory called as she saw Alice, the nanny waved at her from the garage door. She heard Christian mumble something back as she quickly dialed the number to Logan's office, "I would like to speak to Logan please"

"Mr. Huntzberger is in a meeting" the new assistant, Andrew, told her.

"This is Rory Huntzberger, I need to speak with him" Rory reiterated, annoyed that she was having this discussion, Sheila always put her through, no matter what.

"Let me put you on hold please" Andrew fumbled as he put her on hold.

"Ace you are scaring my new employees" Logan laughed as he picked up the phone.

"Well he should know to just put me through" Rory laughed, "How were your calls this morning? You were gone so early"

"I was gone at 4" Logan told her, "They were good. I'm going to have to go to Paris in a few weeks, I was hoping that if Ri is still doing well, the entire family can come"

"That sounds perfect, but I need you to do something for me today" Rory explained as she walked towards the stairs to go and find Riley.

"What do you need?"

"It's Christian, something is going on at school" Rory explained as she climbed the stairs, "He will only talk to you about it, so I said you would pick him up from school"

"Ace, I have meetings all afternoon" Logan groaned, "I don't know if I can make it to pick him up today"

"Logan" Rory warned as she knocked on Riley's bedroom door, to quickly be assured that she simply needed another moment.

"Ror, I can't help it, I have work"

"Logan I am asking you" Rory began, "To prioritize"

"Alright" Logan knew that whenever she asked him to _prioritize _she meant business, "But I want to talk wedding tonight after I have dealt with Christian. I don't think the Hampton's are a good idea"

"You what?" Rory groaned as Riley emerged from her room, "Hey Ri, go put your shoes on?"

"I think we should do it in Stars Hollow, something low key...think Britney and K-Fed, but without the divorce and with infinitely better taste"

"So the only Britney and K-Fed that I am thinking is the surprise wedding factor?" Rory laughed as she followed her daughter back down the stairs, "We'll talk after you pick up your son, I love you"

"Love you too Ace, give Ri a kiss for me"

xxxxx

"So" Logan looked in the rearview mirror at his son, "Mom says something is up?"

"I don't want to go to school here anymore" Christian stated simply.

"Why not?"

"You promise not to tell?"

"No" Logan laughed, "But I promise to do everything I can to help"

"I don't want you to tell" Christian repeated.

"Well I'll tell you what" Logan compromised, "You tell me what is going on, and I promise to help fix it, and if I don't have to tell anyone, I won't, but if it's important, I might have to tell"

"Fine" Christian huffed.

"So out with it Huntzberger"

"The kids are mean"

"What are they mean about?"

"Matthew Woods said that Riley is going to die"

"He said what?" Logan's head shot up as he heard the words.

"He said that she was sick and his Mommy had said that she was going to die"

"Christian, listen to me" Logan began as he signaled a left hand turn.

"What?"

"Your sister is doing well" Logan told him, "I cannot promise that everything will be perfect, but I can assure you that Riley is doing well. That boy, Matthew doesn't know what he is talking about, and I am having a discussion with your headmaster" Logan continued as he made his way back to the school, "Did you tell your teacher?"

"He heard him" Christian nodded.

"Alright" Logan nodded as he whipped into the school parking lot, "Come on" he instructed as he got out of the car, "You don't say a word, you let me do the talking"

"Dad don't cause a scene" Christian was clearly worried, it was rare that he saw Logan truly upset, and this was an instance where Logan was furious.

"Christian don't worry about this" Logan put his hand on his shoulder and walked into the office, "I need to see the headmaster" he told the secretary quickly.

"I'm sorry but he is unavailable right now, I can make an appointment if you'd like"

"Christian go wait out in the hall for a minute, I'll get you in a second" Logan smiled at his son before returning to the secretary, "Look, I know this isn't particularly your fault, however I will be seeing the headmaster immediately, my name is Logan Huntzberger, and I can buy and sell this school tomorrow if I want. Someone at this school decided to tell my son that his 5 year old sister is dying, and one of the clearly incompetent teacher's sat by and watched. So you find me the headmaster immediately"

"I...uh...Mr. Huntzberger, just give me a moment" the secretary scrambled and knocked on the headmaster's door while Logan called Christian back into the office. "Right this way"

"Thank you" Logan nodded as he walked into the office and shook the headmaster's hand, "We have a problem"

"Oh?"

"I don't have time for semantics, I am an incredibly busy man, and my family is a huge part of my life, and as you know, our family has been going through a difficult time" Logan explained.

"Yes, I know that your daughter is sick, she is no longer attending our junior program"

"Exactly" Logan nodded, "And I was under the impression that given the astronomical amount we pay in tuition each year, the school would be supportive of our current situation"

"Of course" he agreed, "We hope that your daughter, Lorelai has a quick recovery"

"I'm glad we are on the same page" Logan narrowed his eyes at him, using a tone that was normally reserved for business meetings which had gone awry, "My son tells me that he was bullied in class last week, and that one of the other student's told him that his little sister was going to die"

"Well Mr. Huntzberger, I can assure you that kind of behaviour is not tolerated"

"You see I would love to believe that" Logan nodded, "But evidently, one of your faculty members heard this behaviour and said nothing to stop the situation"

"Well I find that hard to believe"

"Well I do not particularly care what you believe" Logan told him, "So we will have this situation solved by tomorrow, along with an apology, or else my children will be going to a different school"

xxxxx

"You yelled at the headmaster?" Rory smirked as she and Logan enjoyed a glass of wine once the kids were in bed.

"I didn't yell" Logan shook his head, "What kind of a school condones that kind of behaviour. I do not want the kids going there"

"Where do you want the kids going?" Rory asked.

"Why don't we send them where you went?" Logan suggested, "Chilton? It is a good school. We can't send them where I went because I went to boarding school, and got kicked out a half dozen times"

"A half dozen times?"

"Ok maybe a dozen times" Logan shrugged, "But Chilton?"

"Chilton is good" Rory nodded, "I can look into that tomorrow"

"Perfect" Logan took a long sip of his wine, "I want Christian out of there by Monday"

"Logan don't be dramatic" Rory warned, "This is bad, we know that this is bad, but we will take care of this. Drastic measures are not going to fix anything, so take a breath"

"I just wanted to punch that smug guy in the face"

"I know" Rory laughed, "Thank you for going to get him"

"Yeah well, I'm some dream boat" Logan kissed her, "I was thinking we can grab lunch tomorrow?"

"I leave for New York tomorrow" Rory told him, "Work, and I need to get some work on the book done"

"How is it coming?"

"I'm trying to make it more broad" Rory explained, "Focus on the big picture, family, you know"

"In addition to the chapter about the kids?"

"Yeah, just...my life" Rory shrugged, "Minus the divorce, I have covered the divorce" she put her glass down, "So what were you saying about a Britney, K-Fed wedding?"

"Well, I was thinking, we want it to be special, but why not just friends and family, at the inn, it will be relaxed, low key, no big deal. Riley still gets her princess dress, but we don't have to do something huge and ridiculous"

"We could do it soon" Rory smiled, "I just want to get it done"

"So let's do it. Screw the Hampton's, screw a big party, let's get this done, and then head to Paris for a honeymoon with the kids"

"You want to honeymoon with the kids?"

"I want to go on a trip with my family" Logan corrected her.

"Well then, on a family trip we will go"


	13. Chapter 13

A/N: Sorry for the delay, we see some progress in this chapter and movement towards the wedding! YAY! We also get to see the old wedding and how very...un-Rory/Logan it was.

**Chapter 13**

"You want to get married at the inn?" Lorelai asked as they each drank a cup of coffee at Luke's while Riley sat at the counter talking to him.

"I do" Rory nodded, "Next weekend"

"Wow" Lorelai laughed, "And the next thing you're going to tell me is that money is no object?"

"Well yes" Rory laughed as Luke brought her another coffee, "Thanks Luke"

"Your daughter is asking for coffee" Luke stated simply.

"So give it to her" Rory grinned, she knew where this conversation was going.

"Seriously? This is so unhealthy"

"Luke, I turned out fine" Rory protested.

"Sure" Luke rolled his eyes as he returned to the counter.

"Mom I understand if you can't do it on such short notice" Rory told her, "But Logan and I were talking, and we were thinking that it would be good to do something low key. Even if we did the 'relaxed' thing in the Hampton's, it would be a big show, we just want friends and family"

"Well, then a wedding you will have" Lorelai grinned, already coming up with ideas, "I will get Sookie in on it, and we will get it done. Next Saturday"

"Next Saturday" Rory repeated, "Thank you, Mom"

"What are parents for?" Lorelai laughed, "I mean, I feel like I have already married my daughter off, and oddly enough it feels like I have married you off to the same man"

"Funny" Rory rolled her eyes, "You have married me off, to the same man, but this is different"

"I can imagine. There won't be a church, or a big poofy Cinderella dress?"

"All of those things are true" Rory nodded, "This wedding will be more...Logan and I"

"Then I am happy to do it" Lorelai looked to the counter where she could see Luke trying to reason with Riley, just the way that he had done with Rory when she was a kid, "Ri come here"

"But Grandma" Riley protested as she stomped over, "Luke was telling me about how if I drink coffee I'm going to turn out just like you. I told him that is who I want to be like"

"Well I'm sure that impressed him" Lorelai laughed, kissing her forehead, "You look beautiful today"

"I went to the doctor this morning" Riley explained, "So I am wearing a pretty dress"

"I can see that" Lorelai smiled, "And what did the doctor say?"

"He said that I am better" Riley grinned broadly as she stood up on her tippy toes.

"Oh?" Lorelai looked to her daughter, "No one told me"

"I want to tell everyone" Riley explained, "That way I get to see everyone happy"

"Honey you always make us happy" Lorelai hugged her tight, relieved that this portion of her granddaughter's battle was over.

Riley inhaled Lorelai's scent, "But when I was sick, everyone cried. I didn't like all the crying, now everyone can be happy again, and I won't feel so yucky"

"You are too smart, just like your Mom"

"I know" Riley grinned as she looked at her mother.

"The doctor says that all of your counts are normal, and it looks like we are in remission" Rory continued to explain what the doctor had told them, "But we still need to go for tests every 3 months to make sure"

"Are we going to go see Daddy soon?" Riley interrupted them.

"We are" Rory looked at her watch, "We should go now if we are going to make it to the office before Daddy goes into a meeting"

"So you're ditching me?" Lorelai stood up.

"We're ditching you, but I will be back this weekend to plan" Rory told her, "And then next week I won't be going to New York"

"What are you and Logan doing?"

"We're going to Chilton" Rory explained, "We want to look into whether or not the kids can attend"

"Something happen at school?" Lorelai asked as she kissed Riley's head.

"I'll tell you about it later" Rory promised, "Bye Mom"

"Bye Grandma" Riley smiled as Rory took her hand.

xxxx

"We're here for the headmaster" Rory looked at the secretary, it was odd, being back in the place she had enjoyed so many firsts.

"Just one moment please"

"I'm not sure we should have left the kids at home" Rory told Logan, "I mean doesn't Christian have a right to know where he might be going?"

"It will be fine, this place bred you...and Paris" Logan laughed.

"I only spent 4 years here" Rory corrected him, "Stars Hollow bred me"

"Our kids are not going to school in Stars Hollow" Logan kissed her temple as the door to the office opened.

"Right this way"

"Mr. and Mrs. Huntzberger" Max Medina stood up as he saw them walk in.

"Mr. Medina" Rory smiled, "I had no idea, last I heard you were back in California?"

"Rory" Max hugged her graciously, "It's good to see you"

"You too" Rory smiled, gesturing to Logan, "This is my husband, Logan Huntzberger"

"Fiance" Logan corrected her with a chuckle as he extended his arm, "But she got the name right. Am I missing something here?"

"Mr. Medina was one of my teachers here at Chilton" Rory explained as she sat down.

"And I was supposed to marry Lorelai" Max continued, "And please, call me Max, we're all adults now" he told her, he was older now, his hair grey with just a few dark streaks through it, and his eyes were tired.

"How are you?" Rory smiled, noticing a wedding ring on his finer, she hoped he was happy, he deserved to be happy.

"I'm great, I got back to Connecticut about 2 years ago, and I've only been here for a few months" Max explained, "I have your son's file, you want to transfer him here?"

"Well he's having some problems" Rory explained, "Christian is a great kid, but the headmaster over there...we just...we butt heads, and it isn't fair to Christian"

"His file reads like a dream" Max commented, "Just like his mothers"

"Nothing like his fathers" Logan interjected.

"Where did you go to school Mr. Huntzberger?"

"The better question might be where didn't I go to school?" Logan laughed, "I ... well, academics weren't my strong suit. I was more or less brought up with a pedigree, I mean, I was supposed to, hell, I am running the Huntzberger Publishing Group. But Christian, and I'm sure our daughter, Riley, will be more like their mother. I was brought up with a sense of entitlement" he admitted, "The world was my playground, but my kids are different, Rory, you must know yourself, is not nearly as materialistic as I was, and our kids aren't either"

"Well its good to know that your kids take more after Rory, although, based on the fact that you are here, it suggests to me that you are also a good parent" Max countered, he was glad to see that Rory was happy. He would have liked to be her step father, over the years he had heard about her, he knew she had married a Huntzberger, and he knew that subsequently they had divorced. He also knew that Lorelai had eventually married Christopher, and that she was happy. That was all he had ever wanted for either of them. He had married twice, once to a woman he had met while teaching in California, they had one child, a son, who spent most of his time in California. His second marriage was to a lawyer, who also had one son, and the two of them had a daughter. He had finally gotten the life he had dreamed of, but it hadn't been with the woman he had expected it to be.

"So do you think this is something we can work out?" Rory asked.

"I believe it is" Max nodded, "Based on his academics, and the glowing reviews from the faculty, Christian, and your daughter would be more than welcome at Chilton. Do you mind if I ask why you didn't consider us in the first place?"

"Well" Rory smiled, "If we're being honest, a lot of our friends were sending their kids to Amherst, and we felt it would be a good fit. I probably should have listened to Paris, her kids are here. Actually, I'm surprised Paris never mentioned that you were here?"

"Well I just got back a few months ago, this is relatively new. I love it, and having the next generation of Paris' family is quite the task, but she probably just forgot to mention it"

"Well, what do we need to sign?" Logan asked, pulling his checkbook from his pocket.

"I'll have the documents faxed to your house" Max suggested as he stood up, "It was good to meet you, and I look forward to seeing Christian in class. I...uh...if you don't mind my asking, how is your mother? I heard she married your father?"

"Mom is good" Rory smiled, "She and Dad got married, god...10 years ago now I think, and she's happy, I'm glad that you're here" she continued, trying not to draw any more attention to the failed engagement between him and her mother, "Christian will be here Monday" Rory shook his hand, "Thank you for your help, Mr. Medina"

xxxx

"So that went well" Logan smiled as they got into his car, "What is the deal with you and _Max" _he asked, emphasizing the point.

"Max was going to marry my Mom" Rory laughed, setting her purse on the back seat, "Mom left him at the alter. He was the first guy she ever really brought around me"

"Did you like him?"

"He was good for her" Rory nodded as they left the driveway, "But the heart wants what the heart wants"

"Well what does the stomach want?" Logan laughed, "Because I am starving"

"I was going to make a chicken dish" Rory explained, "But with coming here, I didn't have time, so I asked Alice to make it"

"That woman deserves a raise" Logan mused.

"Logan" Rory sighed, she hated when he got like this, every once in a while he became so charitable it made her want to scream. Everyone was getting raises, the family was giving up cable, and as much as she supported his philanthropic efforts, it became frustrating when he would suddenly feel guilty for his wealth, "We will donate to charity, like we do every single year, but we are not giving everyone who works for you a raise. Especially considering everyone who works in our house gets paid well, very well, and I would know because I sign their cheques. So no raises, not without talking to your Dad first, and we all know what he'll say"

"Did you seriously just threaten to go to my father? We're getting remarried, we have two kids, by all accounts we are grownups, and you just threatened to go to my Dad?"

"You just said grownups"

"Fine, adults" Logan laughed as they came to a stop at a red light, he took a moment to look at her, "Is this how you ever thought we would end up?" he asked her honestly.

"No" Rory shook her head, "I mean, 20 years ago, I could never have imagined that i would find a man like you, much less fall in love with you"

"I'm not sure if that is a compliment or an insult" Logan smirked as he took a rare moment of quiet and pulled into a parking lot, "Let's talk"

"And once I fell in love with you, I could never imagine a world that you weren't a part of. I would have done anything to make us work" Rory smiled, referring to the time they had spent together in college, "And then, after college, and after Obama, when we got back together, for a while...everything was perfect, and then we had that fairytale wedding" she shook her head, "That wedding was bigger than us, it was ridiculous and complete with people we barely knew, and over the top dishes, it wasn't us. When we had Christian, I swear Logan, I have never seen you so happy as when you looked at that little boy, but then things changed, and I don't know how or when they went wrong, but it all got so far off track, there was no way to make it work anymore, even after Ri"

"Wow" Logan had to admit, he was surprised, they had discussed it before, the things that brought down their relationship the first time, but normally it was in generalizations, not in a way that stung, "I never stopped loving you, any of you"

"I know" Rory nodded, "But you asked if this is where I expected us to end up. The answer is no, I never expected any of this to happen the way it did. But I guess the question you really want to know is, when we were young, is this what I imagined, and the answer is still no"

"Are you happy? I mean, obviously I've disappointed you over the years, but are you happy? Did you make the right choice?"

"Yes Logan" Rory smiled, she knew responses like that irked him, but it was the truth, "I am happy, I am in love, and I wouldn't change a thing. But you asked if this is how I expected my life to turn out"

"I guess neither of us expected things to turn out like this" Logan rested his head against the seat back, putting his right hand overtop of hers, "I'm sorry Ace"

"You know what's funny?" Rory looked at him with a certain amount of sadness in her eyes.

"When we were 20, my biggest fear was you cheating on me" Rory admitted, "That was the only thing that I ever thought would tear us apart"

"Well I can assure you, it never happened" Logan squeezed her hand, "Let's just drop this. I'm sorry I brought it up. You're happy? We're happy?"

"I'm happy" Rory nodded with a smile, "But we need to go see the kids, I am fairly certain that it is dinner time and Alice is going to be ready to kill us"

"She can't kill us, she works for us" Logan laughed, putting the car into gear.

"You haven't heard about the people who's staff murders them? With fire pokers? Or arsenic in coffee?"

"I guess I have avoided those particular news items" Logan laughed.

"Come on, let's go home"

xxxx

"It's ready kid" Lorelai looked at the inn, fully decorated, shut down for the weekend except for guests of the Huntzbergers.

"It looks amazing" Rory touched one of the ivory peonies, "This is perfect"

"I'm glad you like it, wait until you see the cake Sookie made" Lorelai smiled as a bellman brought in Rory's garment bag, "Are you excited?"

"Am I excited? To marry my husband? Yes, I am excited" Rory laughed.

"And you're happy?" Lorelai asked.

Rory smiled as she thought back to the conversation in the parking lot she and Logan had, the one that outlined their expectations, and how life hadn't lived up to their expectations, but it was still their life, it was still a perfect life. "I've never been happier"

"Good" Lorelai wrapped her arm around her shoulder, pulling the two of them close together, "I love you kid" she whispered, she couldn't believe this was her little girl, the daughter she had raised was a woman, an amazing woman who had taken the world by storm.

_"Mom I know you hate these parties, but come on, its an engagement party, for me... your recently engaged daughter" Rory protested, holding up her left hand and pouting at her mother._

_"Even you're wearing black" Lorelai crossed her legs in front of the television._

_"Mom I'm wearing black because I am not yet dressed for my engagement party tonight. Come on, I'm only going to do this once"_

_"You're letting my mother, and Shira Huntzberger throw you and engagement party, doesn't that seem extreme to you?"_

_"Mom, this isn't about the party" Rory shook her head, plopping down on the couch, "This is about Logan and I. We love each other, we make each other happy, so come celebrate. Who cares if its on a yacht or if everyone there is snooty and the food is too small to fill any person up. We can people watch and we can make fun of them, and we can eat way too many finger foods" Rory suggested, she hated that she had to convince Lorelai to come, ever since the fight she had with Emily at Christmas of that year (over the apple tarts no less), they hadn't been speaking and Lorelai had refused to attend any and all events where Emily Gilmore was present, "Make nice with Grandma"_

_"Fine" Lorelai glared at her daughter, "But the finger foods had better not disappoint"_

"This is better" Rory brought her mother out of her thoughts, "Better than last time. This is more us"

"You're right" Lorelai grinned as she looked at the decorations, "Now, I am fairly certain there is a penis cake waiting for you in the kitchen. But don't tell Sook I told you, she will want it to be a surprise"

xxxxx

"Mommy" Riley looked at her mother as they sat in their room at the Dragonfly.

"Yes?"

"Tell me about the first time you and Daddy got married" Riley snuggled up to her. The two of them, and Lorelai and Emily would join them soon, were enjoying Rory's last night before she got married again together. Logan was doing the same with Christian, Josh, Tyler and Mitchum in another room.

"You've heard this story before" Rory kissed her head, enjoying the moment.

"I want to hear it again"

"Alright" Rory agreed, leaning her head back against the pillow.

_The sun was shining as Rory looked out the window to the lawn of Wadsorth Mansion at Long Hill Estate in Middletown, Connecticut. It was the venue that she and Logan had selected out of about 30 options which Shira and Emily had presented to them. She would have been happy getting married at city hall, or in Las Vegas, but this was a wedding which had turned into a circus. _

_"You ready Gilmore?" Paris walked into the room wearing her plum coloured, tea length, off the shoulder bridesmaids dress, "I mean I feel like a fruit someone is about to take a bite out of, but this is what you do for friends"_

_"Just about" Rory exhaled, she could see the guests arriving on the lawn as she stood in her _**_Bride _**_satin robe that the girls had given her at her bachelorette party, "I should probably get dressed though"_

_"Scared?"_

_"Of the crowd" Rory admitted, "But of getting married? No" she shook her head, "I mean, hey, if you and Doyle can do it, so can I"_

_"Doyle practically needed to be sedated through his vows" Rory laughed._

_"He was blubbering like an idiot" Paris smiled, "But hey, make sure that at some point today, you just get a moment for the two of you. Away from everyone else, just enjoy a few moments to yourself"_

_"Thanks Paris" Rory nodded, "That is great advice"_

_"My mom gave it to me" Paris laughed, "A good piece of advice considering who was delivering it"_

_"Alright, well, let's go" Rory smiled, following Paris into the suite full of her bridal party. Lorelai and Lane each served as matron of honour, while Paris and Honor were each bridesmaids. "Ready to get me dressed?" Rory shrugged as she looked at her Vera Wang dress hung up on the door._

_"Last chance to back out" Honor handed her a glass of champagne, "But I hope you don't, I've always wanted a sister"_

_"I'm not backing out" Rory assured the woman as she raised her glass, "But I would like to thank all of you for being here with me, I am lucky to have such amazing women in my life"_

_"We're happy for you babe" Lorelai took a long sip of her drink, "Who knew you and I would each get married in the same year"_

_"Maybe you can stay married this time" Rory joked._

_"So funny" Lorelai rolled her eyes, "I can hardly believe you are my offspring"_

_"Well, I've been told that bringing me into the world was a traumatic event" Rory countered quickly as she set her glass down, "But come on, lets get me into this dress"_

_"It's beautiful" Lane smiled as took the dress off of its hanger, the dress was a ball gown to say the least. It had a huge tule skirt that practically weighed more than Rory, and the strapless bodice was encrusted with tiny crystals. The dress had been custom designed, along with a second dress, a satin option which Rory would wear for the reception. "Anyone remember how to button this thing up?"_

_"Mom?" Rory looked to her mother._

_"I know how" Lorelai promised her as Rory stepped into the gown, her breath hitching as Lorelai began to lace up the bodice, "Deep breath kiddo"_

_"This is a deep breath" Rory quipped as Lorelai tugged, "I guess I shouldn't have had that pie last night"_

_"It was worth it" Lorelai laughed, continuing to lace the dress up._

_"Is this almost done?" Rory asked as she exhaled deeply, her hair was pulled back into an updo, one which would easily come out for the reception later, but her Grandmother had requested an updo for the ceremony and at least some of the photos._

_"Look at yourself" Lorelai beamed, "You look beautiful"_

_"Wow" Rory smiled, taking a moment to drink in her own reflection, "I guess it's time"_

_"Unless you want to take that last chance to run?" Paris laughed as Rory shook her head, "Then let's get you married"_

_Walking down the aisle was the longest walk of her life as her father held onto her arm tightly. She could see her friends, and her family, the people who had watched her grow up watching her as she made her way down the aisle. Most importantly though she could see the man of her dreams waiting for her, and as she saw the smile on his face grow, she couldn't help but feel weak in the knees._

_"You ok?" Chris asked her as they stopped at the alter and he gave her a kiss on the cheek, "It's not too late to run"_

_"I'm fine" Rory assured him with a smile, "Thank you, Dad" she could feel her eyes glazing over as Logan took her hand._

_"Take care of her" Christopher nodded to Logan._

_"I will, sir" Logan nodded as he looked at Rory, he whispered to avoid the microphones which were around the venue, "You look beautiful"_

_"This is..."_

_"This is about us, forget about everyone but the two of us" Logan whispered again before turning his attention to the minister._


	14. Chapter 14

a/n: I hope you can all forgive me for this terrible delay! I have literally been busier than ever, and now instead of being an aunt once, I am going to be an aunt on 3 separate occasions so it has been a continuous whirlwind!

**Chapter 14**

"You look perfect Mommy" Riley looked up at Rory as Rory adjusted a strand of pearls around her neck.

"Thank you" Rory smiled as she watched Riley twirl around the room, enjoying the moment, moments like this were the best part about being a parent. Riley was so carefree, she was the perfect kid.

"You ready?" Lorelai asked as she walked into the room wearing her own dress, "I just checked on the boys, they are ready to go"

"Is Christian going to come in here?" Rory asked, "To walk Ri down the aisle"

"Absolutely" Lorelai nodded, "But first, I have two presents" Lorelai handed a small blue bag to both Rory and Riley, "From Daddy" Lorelai explained to Riley.

"He is too much" Rory laughed as she opened up the bag to find a small box with a white ribbon around it, finding a beautiful diamond encrusted key, and Riley receiving a similar one.

"Well, he's yours" Lorelai laughed, "For the second time"

"Alright sweetie" Rory looked at Riley, "You go with Grandma, and say thank you to Daddy, and get Christian to come over here, alright?"

"Ok" Riley nodded as she took Lorelai's hand.

"You need a minute?" Lorelai asked her daughter.

"Yeah" Rory nodded.

"Second thoughts?"

"No" Rory laughed as she watched them walk out of the room, taking advantage of the moment of piece to think about how far they had come.

_"I Lorelai Leigh Gilmore, take you, Logan Elias Huntzberger to be my lawfully wedded husband. In sickness and in health, for richer and poorer, as long as we both shall live"_

_Logan smiled as the words came out of her mouth. He recognized that this wasn't what either of them had wanted, but what mattered was that in the end, they would be together._

_The ceremony went quickly, despite the fact that Rory knew from a test run that it was 27 minutes long, far too long for her liking. _

_"Come on Ace" Logan put his hand gently on her back and guided her towards her bridal suite._

_"Logan" Rory laughed as she followed him into the room, "We have guests"_

_"No, my mother, and your grandmother have guests. We don't have guests" Logan corrected her, kissing her passionately, "We're married"_

_Rory felt herself smiling against his lips, "I love you" she whispered as they pulled apart._

_"Let's just have a few minutes to ourselves" Logan held her close to his body, allowing her to rest her head on his chest._

_"Ok"_

Rory smiled at the memory, sure there first wedding wasn't bad, it just wasn't them, and this wedding, it would be all about them.

"Mom?" Christian looked at her as he stood at the doorway to the room wearing a grey suit that she had to assume would match Logan's.

"Hey" Rory smiled as she turned to face her son, "You look handsome, has Grandma seen you yet? She will love it"

"We already took pictures" Christian explained, "You look beautiful"

"Thank you" Rory smiled, "Is Ri with your Dad?"

Christian nodded, "What do I have to do?"

"We went over this yesterday" Rory laughed, "You walk down the aisle with Riley, and Grandpa Chris will walk me down the aisle to Dad"

"Hasn't he done that already?" Christian asked.

"He has, but this time is different" Rory assured him, "Everything is going to be better this time around Christian, you believe that, right?"

"You seem happier now" Christian nodded, "Better than before, when you and Dad were together"

"You remember all of that, don't you?" Rory sighed, she tried not to think about the effect the divorce had on her children, she tried to convince herself that the kids were better off.

_"Where's Dad?" Christian asked as he took a bite of his chicken breast at the kitchen table._

_"He's working" Rory lied, she still hadn't come up with a good way to explain to her son that she had actually kicked Logan out, that he wouldn't be coming home._

_"Will he be home later? I have soccer tomorrow"_

_"You will see your Dad soon" Rory promised him vaguely, "Now eat your salad, you can't just eat the meat"_

_"Where is Riley?" _

_"She's out with Aunty Honor"_

_"Doesn't Aunt Honor work at the same place as Dad?"_

_"Yes Christian, Honor works with Dad, but they do different things"_

_"So why can't Dad come home?" Christian asked._

_Rory knew in that moment that she couldn't continue lying to him, she needed to tell him the truth, no matter how much it hurt. "Christian, there is no nice way to tell you this, and I want you to understand that Dad and I love you and Riley more than anything in the world. This decision has nothing to do with your sister and you, but Dad and I aren't going to be living together anymore"_

_"You're getting a divorce" Christian shoved his plate away from him. "You always make Riley and I work on our fights! You say that we have to love each other and we have to stick together because we're family. You and Dad are family too! You have to work! You have to compromise, and share!" he shouted._

_"Honey" Rory approached her son, her heart breaking that he was feeling this kind of pain, and even worse, knowing that she was responsible for this kind of pain. "Dad and I just can't do this anymore, and you and Ri will be so much happier because you'll have 2 bedrooms, and 2 Christmas's and 2 birthdays" she tried to focus on the things that sounded slightly more fun._

_"I don't want 2 of everything"_

"I promise it is different this time" Rory assured her son as she squeezed his hand, smiling as Riley walked back into the room with Lorelai and Christopher.

"Ready to get this show on the road kiddo?"

"I think so" Rory smiled, "Christian, Ri, you guys go, Grandma will take you down. Just give me a minute with Grandpa"

"And then you and Daddy are getting married?" Riley grinned.

"Yes" Rory smiled, "Just 5 more minutes and Daddy and I will be getting married"

"Come on" Lorelai smiled as she led her grandkids out of the room.

"Here we are again" Chris laughed as he looked at his daughter, "You look beautiful"

"Thanks" Rory smiled, "Do you think I'm making a mistake?"

"Nah" Chris shook his head, "I think you're in love, and I think you and Logan are the real deal, but you need to remember that things aren't always easy, and sometimes you have to fight. Fight to make your family a priority. I never did that, and that is why it took so long for your Mom and I to work. You need to want him as much as you want him to want you"

"Thanks Dad" Rory smiled as she took his hand, "Ready to do this?"

"It's a lot different from the last time" Chris smirked, "More you"

"Well the last time couldn't have been any less me" Rory countered quickly.

"Come on Ror" Chris took her hand as they walked out of the room.

xxxx

"I Logan Elias Huntzberger, take you, Lorelai Leigh Gilmore Huntzberger to be my lawfully wedded wife, again" Logan smirked, "I promise to be home for dinner, and not miss a single birthday, anniversary, or anything else that I promise to be there for. I promise to honour you, and love you from today, until the end of time"

Rory smiled as she listened to the words, they were different from the first time, and they were something that she knew he meant. "I Lorelai Leigh Gilmore Huntzberger promise to take you Logan Elias Hunzberger to be my husband. I promise to not sweat the little things, and I promise to not get mad when you leave your towel on the floor, or your socks at the bottom of the bed. I promise to fight for us, and our family for as long as we both shall live"

Logan laughed as he listened to her, just like when Rory heard his vows, they were just as perfect.

"By the power given to me by the state of Connecticut, I now pronounce you husband and wife, again" the pastor smiled, "You may now kiss your bride"

"We did it" Logan grinned as he kissed her passionately, pulling her close to his body.

"I love you" Rory grinned against his lips as she enjoyed the presence of their friends and family.

xxxxx

"What are you and Daddy going to do today?" Riley asked as she looked at the wedding cake with her mother by her side.

"We are going to stay up late and watch movies and eat junk food" Rory smiled, she was probably telling a partial truth.

"Why can't Christian and I come?"

"Because" Rory laughed, "But you can help with cutting the cake, and I think the candy bar that Sookie prepared is going to come out soon"

"Does it have chocolate?"

"Yes, it has chocolate" Rory laughed, "You asked for a chocolate layer"

"When does the dancing start?"

"Well" Rory looked across the outdoor tent to Logan, "I think it is going to start in a few minutes. So you remember what happens?"

"You dance with Daddy first" Riley explained, "And then, I dance with Daddy while you dance with Christian, and then I dance with Grandpa Richard while you dance with Grandpa"

"You are too smart" Rory laughed as she turned, "Let's go see Dad"

"Grandma says I'm just like you when you were a kid" Riley explained, taking her mothers hand, "You look so pretty"

"So do you" Rory smiled, walking towards Logan and Christian.

"Hey beautiful" Logan smiled, looking up from his conversation with Christian.

"Hey husband" Rory countered quickly as she saw the kids immerse themselves in conversation.

"We did it"

"We did it" Rory repeated with a smile, "So let's swear we will never have to do this again"

"I can assure you" Logan laughed, keeping his arms around her waist, "I am never going to let you go again"

"Ladies and gentlemen" the master of ceremonies came onto the microphone, "I would like to introduce the newly married, Mr and Mrs Logan Huntzberger, and welcome them to the dancefloor to share their first dance as a married couple"

"You know I have two left feet" Logan warned, whispering into her ear.

"And I have a thick skin" Rory promised as she followed him onto the dance floor as the music began to play.

"So what do you want to do in this marriage?" Logan laughed, keeping her body close to his as the music played and their guests watched them intently.

"Well, I was thinking it could not end in divorce" Rory laughed, "And maybe, just maybe we can talk about having another baby?"

"You want to have another baby?"

"I mean, if you do? We would have to talk about it" Rory felt herself blushing, they hadn't discussed having more kids, but for some reason she felt like maybe they should try again. "We have two amazing kids, so I am sure a third would be even better"

"Well I sure as hell want to spend time trying to have another baby" Logan laughed.

"Well then we can do that" Rory continued to smile as she rested her head on his shoulder to enjoy the rest of their dance. She could see the kids smiling, she could see that everyone in the room, even though there were barely 100 people, were all there because they loved Logan and Rory. It really was the perfect day, she could even see that Shira had enjoyed herself, despite the fact that it was not a lavish event the same way the first wedding was.

"Do you remember what it was like? Bringing them home?"

"It was terrifying" Rory laughed, her head remaining on his shoulder, "They just gave us those babies"

"They did" Logan agreed, "But look how they've turned out, they're perfect"

_"Christian come meet your baby sister" Logan smiled as he put his hand on Christian's back, "This is Lorelai"_

_"That's Mommy's name" Christian stated simply as he looked in the incubator. _

_"We are going to call her Riley" Rory explained, "Riley is your baby sister"_

_"She looks like an alien" Christian told his parents as he stared at his baby sister. "Why is she all red?"_

_"Babies are always red when they first come out" Logan explained, "You looked an awful lot like an alien too"_

_"No way!" Christian looked at his father with anger on his face, "I never ever ever looked like an alien"_

_"You looked adorable when you were born" Rory smiled at her two kids, "I love you both so much"_

xxxxx

"So a baby?" Logan grinned as they sat on the tarmac at the private airport.

"Not now Logan" Rory laughed, they were flying to the Hamptons to enjoy some time in the house that Logan had purchased for the kids. They would spend a week there, and then Riley, Christian, Colin, Steph and their kids, Finn, Honour, Josh, Tyler, Aly and Georgia would be coming to spend another week there.

"You said you wanted a baby, I am just trying to give you a baby" Logan countered as he kissed her neck gently.

"Well I can't complain about a husband who desperately wants to make me happy" Rory put down her newspaper.

"Well I'm glad you can see my point of view" Logan sat on the arm of her seat, "And it is just us in here"

"Us and Stella, the flight attendant" Rory pointed out.

"She will go away for as long as I ask her to" Logan countered, kissing her once more.

"You are too much" Rory laughed, enjoying the moment, realizing that with the exception of when they were secretly dating, they hadn't enjoyed the passion in their marriage that they should have, the passion they had when they first met, and the passion they had now. She loved the passion, the passion was something that they always had, dating back to her Grandparents vow renewal.

"Was that a yes?" Logan quipped, his kisses trailing down her neck.

"Excuse me, Mr and Mrs Huntzberger?" the flight attendant, Stella walked into the cabin.

"Stella" Rory laughed as she sat up, "What can we do for you?"

"The captain says we are about to take off, you'll have to take a seat and fasten your seat belts"

"Of course" Rory nodded, "Mr Huntzberger will head straight to his seat"

"Stella" Logan smiled at her as he wiped the lipstick from his mouth, he had a sinking suspicion that it would be there. "Once we are at cruising altitude if you wouldn't mind just bringing in a bottle of champagne, and then you can leave the two of us, we really won't be needing anything"

"Of course Mr Huntzberger" Stella nodded as she turned back towards the front of the plane.

"So we will have privacy" Logan smirked at his wife.

"Of course we will" Rory rolled her eyes as she put her seatbelt on.

"What can I say, I'm a jack of all trades"

"I'm going to work on my book, until we get this supposed _privacy." _Rory told him, grabbing her laptop.

"You are all work and no play" Logan laughed, "How did we end up together"

"Years of practice and careful calculation"

"Just relax Logan, maximum 10 minutes until you get your supposed privacy" Rory told him, opening her laptop.

_As mothers, we all know that our goal in life becomes making sure our children have everything they could ever want, and everything they could need. We want to give them everything that we didn't have, even if we grew up in the most loving and amazing families, we decide that it is our responsibility to make their worlds as perfect as possible. But what happens when we do this? We somehow end up neglecting our partners, and then one day you look at your husband, wife, spouse, boyfriend, girlfriend, or whatever, and you realize that the passion is gone. Suddenly you don't steal moments, or glances, there is no spontaneity, you surely don't have quickies in the morning, mainly because it is a possibility that your kids are in your bed, and you can't sneak away into a quiet room at a party, because what if your kids break something. How can you keep this from happening? I hope you weren't expecting an answer, because I have yet to figure it out, but it is something that as partner's, we all need to be aware of. Keeping the fire in a relationship is undoubtedly the hardest part, but sometimes the most important. _

_Anyone who read my last book knows the struggles I went through with my divorce. The ups, the downs and everything in between. What I realize now, is that what my marriage was missing was passion. We stopped looking at each other as lovers, and we considered ourselves partners and parents first. When my father walked me down the aisle, giving me away for the second time, to the same man, he told me something about love and relationships. He told me to fight for my family, and I realized that what I really needed to do was fight to keep the spark in my relationship. I promised myself, as I walked down the aisle that I wouldn't let the sparkle in my husband's eye fade away, because I need that spark, we both do. So how on earth do we keep this spark? Two kids and a million years later, how on earth can we keep this alive?_

"10 minutes are up" Logan interrupted her process, "Come on" he took the laptop and pushed it closed.

"Hey, I was working on that"

"Thank god for auto save" Logan grinned, "Come on, we're on our honeymoon, you want a baby, this is the perfect moment"

"What the hell" Rory grinned as she stood up and kissed her husband.

"That's my girl"

xxxx

"We cannot just spend a week in bed" Rory told Logan as she put on her bathing suit, "I am going to sit by the pool"

"Why are you wearing a one-piece?" Logan asked as he set down his newspaper.

"Have you seen the other women in this town?" Rory laughed, grabbing her sunglasses, "They all look like they spend their entire lives in pilates class. I do not exactly have the same body I had before the kids"

"Rory you have exactly the same body you had before the kids, and you look amazing no matter what you are wearing" Logan stood up, grabbing his own swimsuit from his drawer.

"You're coming?" Rory ignored his comment.

"Yes, I'm coming" Logan pulled off his boxers and put on the swimming shorts, "I'm on my honeymoon, my job is to spend time with my beautiful wife"

"Have you called the kids today?" Rory asked.

"I have called them" Logan told her.

"You look good" Rory commented as he walked out to the pool, "When on earth have you had the time to work on those biceps and that six pack?"

"Divorce, I had a lot of time on my hands" Logan kissed her, "Are we going in, or just doing that weird thing that girls do when they sit beside the pool but don't actually go in it"

"Girls are night weird"

"You're right, you're a woman, the weird thing that women do"


	15. Chapter 15

A/N - I owe everyone a huge apology. My life has been chaotic lately between renovations and wedding planning, but I do apologize. I still do not own any of the Gilmore Girls!

**Chapter 15**

"_I don't want to do this anymore" Rory sobbed, tears streaming down her cheeks as her bangs were glued to her forehead with sweat._

"_It's almost done baby, you're doing great Ace" Logan kissed her head gently, "You can do this, I know you can do this"_

"_It hurts Logan" Rory cried, grimacing as she tried once more to push._

"_I just need you to focus" the doctor told her, "One more big push and we are almost done"_

"_I can't do it" Rory cried._

"_Ace" Logan stood so he was standing in front of her, trying not to wince at the grip she had on his hand. "One big push and we get to go home to Riley, and to Christian and introduce them to their little sister. One more big push Rory"_

"_Logan I can't" Rory sobbed, she had been in labour for almost a full day, and it was excruciating, much worse than either of their other two children._

"_Rory I need you to push" the doctor looked at her with a solemn face, his voice making the urgency obvious._

"_Come on Ace" Logan encouraged her, stroking her hair as she let out one final push and one final gasp of air._

"_Congratulations" the doctor smiled as he pulled a little baby, "Its time for you to meet your daughter"_

"_She's beautiful" Rory laughed, allowing herself to finally relax as the nurses cleaned her off and brought her back over._

"_You did great, Ace" Logan kissed her forehead as he looked at their daughter, "She's beautiful"_

"Mom Catherine is crying" Christian told her as though she couldn't hear the noise.

"I know she is" Rory laughed, "Your Dad is with her, changing her diaper"

"Why does she cry so much?" Christian sighed.

"Because she is a baby and she doesn't know how to talk yet, so this is how she communicates. You used to cry all the time, but because you were the youngest, no one cared, because all you did was disturb Dad and I" Rory stuck her tongue out at him, "I'll go check on them" she told him as she walked from his room to the baby nursery, "Hey" she smiled as she walked in to see Logan pick up the freshly swaddled infant.

"Hey yourself" Logan grinned as he put his daughter, Catherine Emily Gilmore Huntzberger onto his shoulder, "I didn't think you'd be up so soon"

"Well being in bed for a week has done me in, and Christian called for me" Rory explained, "How is she doing?"

"She's great" Logan assured her, "She has eaten, and burped, and been changed, and napped. Why don't you sit down, you can hold her"

"Thank you" Rory smiled as she took a seat in the overstuffed rocking chair they had custom made for the nursery when they found out that she was pregnant, "It seems like she gets bigger every day"

"Well she's a week old" Logan laughed, "She basically does get bigger every day"

"She looks like you, just like Ri, both of our girls look like you" Rory smiled as Logan handed her the infant, "Hey pretty girl"

"Well Christian looks nothing like me. So I'm pretty sure you had an affair with the mailman or something" Logan winked as he leaned against the crib watching them, "Where are the other two?"

"My mom took Riley to the doctor, and Christian is doing his homework. Max sent home a congratulatory card with him, which was really sweet"

"Chilton seems to be a much better fit" Logan nodded.

"I know" Rory smiled as she stroked her daughters hair, "Did my Grandparents call?"

"Yes" Logan told her, "They are going to come over tomorrow night to meet her. Emily is pissed that you didn't call her home early from Europe, but I think Richard understands, and obviously my parents will appear sometime soon"

"Well you know Mitchum and Shira, they are busy people. Huntzbergers afterall" Rory laughed, keeping her eyes focused on their daughter, "She is perfect"

"So thats how we know she's more than you" Logan laughed, "I'm going to go try to get some work done. Shout if you need me, ok?"

"Logan I can put her back in the crib myself" Rory laughed, "I'm not incompetent, I just have some stitches"

"I love you" Logan pushed himself off of the crib and kissed her gently, "All of you"

xxxx

"Daddy" Riley looked up at him as she walked into his office.

"What's up?" Logan closed his laptop, knowing that he wouldn't get any work done now that she had come in.

"Tell me a story" Riley smiled, taking a seat on one of the oversized chairs on the other side of the desk.

"A story about what?" Logan smiled, leaning back in his chair to enjoy the moment.

"Why did you and Mommy fall in love?" Riley asked sweetly, even though she had heard the story a million times.

"When did Mommy and I fall in love" Logan repeated, "You know, I think that every single day I love you guys even more"

"Daddy" Riley crossed her arms, "I want the story"

"Ok, ok" Logan laughed, "Well, it was a long time ago" he began to explain, "And your Uncle Finn, and Uncle Colin made fun of me a lot"

"That's because boys are silly"

"_Who is that ravishing creature?" Finn asked as they stumbled away from Rory's dorm room, "And why on earth haven't I slept with her"_

"_Her name is Rory" Logan called out absently, "And you won't sleep with her"_

"_Rory" Finn repeated, "Certainly sounds exotic"_

"_She's from Hartford" Logan stated, he had found out pieces of information from his mother, and other bits from the parts of conversations that he paid attention to when he was actually at the Daily News._

"_So she's more your type" Colin nodded, "Got a crush there Huntzberger"_

"_She's hot" Logan shrugged, trying to brush off any suggestion that he might actually be interested in a woman for something other than her looks. _

"_She told you off" Colin continued, "Which has you intrigued, because who would date talk back to Logan Huntzberger"_

"_Shut up" Logan hated when Colin was drunk, when Colin was drunk he had balls, and he was far more likely to say something stupid, or even worse, accurate when he was drunk._

"_Look man, she's good looking, she seems to be your people, and she knows when to push you, I say go for it"_

"_Well I'm glad I have your blessing" Logan rolled his eyes dramatically._

"Mommy does tell you what to do" Riley grinned.

"I know" Logan smiled, "And if she didn't, sometimes I don't think I would know what to do with myself. You know how Mommy picks out my clothes"

"She says you would wear a black shoe with a brown shoe if she didn't help you"

"Well" Logan stood up and walked around the desk, kissing Riley on the top of her head, "I think that is a little extreme. What do you say we go and see your little sister?"

"Isn't she with Mom? Crying or something?"

"No" Logan laughed, "She is not crying, we can't hear her" he nodded to the baby monitor. "Or, would you rather go out for Daddy-Riley ice cream?" he asked her, knowing that everyones attention had been split recently.

"Ice cream" Riley grinned.

"Ice cream it is then, go get your coat and shoes, I'll tell Mom" Logan told her, walking out of his office and heading towards the stairs while he heard Riley running behind him.

"Can Christian come too?" Riley asked as Logan began to head up the stairs.

"Of course" Logan agreed, "You go ask him" he told her, making a left at the top of the stairs to go to the nursery while Riley made a right to go to Christian's room, "Hey" he smiled as he saw Rory still in the rocking chair.

"What have you got her so excited about?" Rory laughed, she could hear Riley talking to Christian.

"I'm going to take them both for ice cream. I just wanted to see if you wanted anything before we left, or if that was ok with you?"

"It's fine" Rory assured him, he worried about her a lot because she was still recovering from the delivery, but she felt stronger every day. "You go with them, I think they could use some attention, and I am going to try to get some work done"

"Ace, you gave birth a week ago, you don't need to get any work done" Logan told her, "And in case you didn't know, you're a Huntzberger, we have more money than we know what to do with"

"Logan" Rory laughed, "I work because it makes me feel good"

"I know" Logan bent down and kissed her, "We'll be back soon, and I will bring you a double chocolate fudge cookie dough ice cream"

"You know the way to my heart" Rory smiled as he turned to walk out of the door.

xxx

"So Ri how was your doctors appointment?" Logan asked as he enjoyed a cup of cookie dough ice cream with his kids.

"The doctor gave me another star" Riley explained, taking another bite of ice cream, "And if I get 2 more stars, I only have to see him twice a year" she continued, currently she was going to the doctor every 3 months, and all of her appointments had been clear, which meant that if she went another 6 months with clear checkups, she wouldn't have to have tests run as frequently.

"That's awesome" Logan smiled, obviously Lorelai had told him what had gone on at the doctors appointment but he could see from the smile on Riley's face that she was excited to tell him the news. "How was school buddy?"

"It was good" Christian nodded as he looked for the best way to eat his ice cream cone without getting food all over him, "I'm excited for the science fair. Can you come?"

"When is it?" Logan asked.

"Next Tuesday"

"Well" Logan thought through his calendar, "You let me know what time, and as long as I don't have an important meeting, of course I will be there"

"Can I go too?" Riley smiled as she looked from her brother to her father, anyone could tell that she idolized the two men.

"Of course" Logan smiled, "Who knows, Mom might be able to come by then"

"Why is Mommy sick?"

"Mommy isn't sick" Logan explained, "But because Mommy had an operation when she had Catherine, she just needs a little bit more time"

"Why did Catherine hurt Mommy?"

"Catherine didn't hurt her" Logan laughed, "Sometimes though having a baby hurts, but then when its over, and the baby gets bigger and does some things on their own, it is all worth it. You just ask Mommy, she will tell you how it is so worth it"

xxx

"The kids are asleep" Logan smiled as he joined his wife in bed.

"You are super Dad" Rory smiled as he kissed her gently.

"Need anything?"

"Just for you to relax. You know the nanny can do all of this, and the baby nurse, you don't have to do everything"

"I know" Logan nodded, "But they are my kids, and I like getting to do this stuff with them, I have executives, and a staff so that I can delegate, so I think it makes the most sense to let them do their jobs, so that I can focus on what is really important"

"You're amazing" Rory smiled, "Can you hand me my laptop?" she asked.

"What are you working on?" Logan leaned over to the bedside table and picked it up.

"Just some last minute editing of the book. I can't believe it goes to print next week"

"Well HPG is hoping you will make us a fortune. So keep in mind, Catherine's education fund depends on it being another good one" Logan winked.

"I've been working on it for long enough" Rory laughed, opening the laptop up, "It pretty much documents everything from us getting back together until the pregnancy"

"Honor is planning the launch party in New York" Logan told her.

"Oh" Rory nodded, she hadn't really been out since she had given birth, and it had only been a week, so she wasn't quite ready for a big party, "When is that?"

"Next month" Logan explained, "So you've got about 6 weeks...is that alright?"

"6 weeks is perfect" Rory nodded, "I mean, it'll motivate me, give me something to look forward to. Maybe we can make it a grown ups weekend?"

"That sounds perfect" Logan agreed as he kissed her gently, "Don't work on it too long, and if Catherine wakes up, leave it to me. You sleep through the night, we have enough pumped milk in the fridge"

"Have I told you lately that you are amazing?" Rory smiled.

"Not recently" Logan kissed her once more before standing up to remove his clothing for bed.

"You're amazing" Rory repeated before focusing her attention back to her computer.

xxxx

"You must be Neil" Rory smiled as she opened the door.

"Mrs. Huntzberger" he smiled as he shook her hand, "It's a pleasure to meet you"

"Honor has told me great things" Rory nodded as she stepped out of the way, allowing him to enter the home.

"Well I have done a lot of work for Honor, and her parents, and your husband even. I'm surprised we haven't met before"

"Well its not often that I am the one making the big purchases" Rory smiled as they entered the library, "So did you bring them?"

"Well I brought a selection of the watches so that you could choose what you think is best. We have just about everything you could ever imagine, and every price point. Honor didn't say if there was a particular price you were going for?"

"Well this is a surprise for Logan, he has been so great since we had our daughter, and I just want to show him how much I appreciate him. So I thought what better way to show him that than with a beautiful watch"

"He sounds like a lucky man" Neil, the jeweler smiled as he opened up his briefcase, allowing Rory to look at his selection, "Just grab anything you'd like to see"

"That one" Rory pointed to a rose coloured Audemar Piguet self winding piece. "That is it"

"That watch is $77,000" Neil told her, "Did you want to take it now, or should I have it sent from the store"

"I'll take it now" Rory smiled as she picked up the watch, "Do you take credit? Otherwise I can write you a cheque"

xxxx

Rory felt odd, she had just spent a small fortune on a watch for her husband. Not that they didn't spend ridiculous amounts of money on silly things frequently, even their children's birthday parties were extravagant and outrageous, but sometimes the extravagance made her feel uncomfortable, even when she knew it shouldn't.

As Rory adjusted her Alexander McQueen v-neck, double peplum dress, she stepped into her car and began to drive. She would surprise her husband, she was going to show him that after all of the excitement had died down, after the wedding, and the baby, she still loved him. She was going to take him and surprise him with an amazing night, something she knew he had wanted to do but since she had a tough delivery and had struggled to lose the remaining baby weight, she had been opposed to going out. But tonight, tonight was their night, tonight they were going to have fun, and love each other the way they had when they were 21, and the way they still did.

"Hi Rochelle" Rory smiled as she walked past Logan's secretary.

"Mrs. Huntzberger" she stood up with a smile, "You aren't on the schedule today"

"I'm here as a surprise" Rory explained, "Is he in his office?"

"He's in a meeting right now" Rochelle smiled, she knew about how difficult things had been for Rory, Logan had told her, and she was glad to see her out, "You look great"

"Thank you" Rory felt herself blushing, "Can I wait in his office?"

"Of course" Rochelle nodded, "I won't tell him you're here"

Rory nodded as she pulled open the heavy oak door and walked inside his office. There were photos of herself and the kids all over his desk, there always had been, even when things were at their worst, she knew that even when his actions spoke louder than his words, he had never stopped loving her, or their family.

Rory walked over to the bar that looked out over the rest of downtown Hartford and poured herself a scotch before returning to lean back on the heavy wooden desk. She loved being in the office, she loved working, she needed to get back to work after the book tour was over with. She just wanted to get back to newspapers and writing and editing, what she loved, what she did best. Sure she had enjoyed her time with ABC on television, but it made her realize it wasn't truly what she loved.

Rory could hear a slight commotion outside of the office, which she knew from experience meant that Logan was on his way back in, she could hear the creak of the door as she propped herself onto the desk, leaving her skirt even though she knew it had come up too high on her thigh. Tonight was about them, finding themselves and remembering exactly why they had chosen to spend their lives together.

"Rochelle I need to get our of here soon, can you get me the paperwork for the Pasadena acquisition" Logan could be heard as he twisted the door open, followed by about 3 other men before he saw Rory standing with a mischievous smile on her face. "Guys" he looked to his coworkers who had seen Rory but brought their attention elsewhere, "We will have to finish this tomorrow"

"Of course" the men nodded as they left the room.

"Well I sure know how to clear a room" Rory smirked as Logan walked towards her

"What on earth are you doing here?" Logan kissed her as he stood in front of her, "You look amazing"

"This is for you" Rory held up the bag which held the watch.

"What did you get me a gift for?" Logan grinned, he couldn't help but grin, this spontaneity, it was part of what he loved about Rory, and it had been so infrequent lately that sometimes he forgot it was there, but he couldn't hide how much she meant to him in this moment.

"For being an amazing husband" Rory smiled, "And an even more amazing father"

"Ace" Logan kissed her once more before beginning to open the gift, "This is too much Ace"

"You once told me" Rory stood up straight and put her hands around his neck, "That nothing was too much. That we had the world at our fingertips, and we would never tire of each other, and that we always had to keep surprising each other. So tonight, tonight is my surprise"


	16. Chapter 16

a/n: Well, I hope this wasn't as long a wait as the last one! Read, relax, enjoy. I do not own Gilmore Girls!

**Chapter 16**

"Where are we going?" Logan asked as Rory pulled him out of the elevator and onto the roof of the building where the Huntzberger helicopter was waiting for them.

"New York" Rory kissed him gently, the same way she had when they were young and didn't have a care in the world, "We will be home tomorrow"

"Ace, we have 2 kids and a newborn" Logan laughed as he allowed her to pull him to the door and climb in.

"Thank god for the nanny" Rory winked, "Tonight is about us Logan, just us"

"I feel like I should have gotten you something" Logan laughed as he put the seatbelt on and wrapped his right arm tightly around Rory's shoulders.

"You've given me pretty much everything Huntzberger" Rory leaned her head on his shoulder as she heard the pilot tell them they were about to take off.

xxx

"How on earth did you put all of this together?" Logan laughed as he looked out of their balcony at the Gansevoort Hotel.

"I name dropped" Rory kissed him, "Now there is a change of clothes for you in the bag" she nodded to the overnight bag she had prepared for them, "And we are going out tonight"

"Going out?" Logan repeated.

"Clubbing" Rory winked, "Oh, and Colin, Finn, and Steph all have rooms too...so it's going to be like the good old days"

"You are too much" Logan laughed as she disappeared into the bathroom, "What are you doing?" he called after her.

"You didn't think I was wearing this did you?" Rory called as she tossed the dress she had been wearing out onto the floor, "Tonight baby we are partying like it is 2006"

"I think I just died and went to heaven" Logan laughed as he opened the suitcase and found a Burberry polo to go with the pair of dark jeans that were already in there. He had just pulled it over his head when he heard a knock at the door, "I guess I have that" he called as he pulled the bathroom door shut when he walked past.

"Well speak of the devil mate, we were just talking about our glory days before parenthood and responsibility"

"Parenthood and responsibility still haven't hit you Finn" Colin laughed as he pushed his way in, each of them holding 2 bottles of champagne, "Happy yesteryear"

"And an excellent yesteryear it shall be" Logan kissed Steph on the cheek, "You look beautiful"

"Not so bad yourself Huntzberger. Now where is your beautiful wife who organized all of this?"

"I am right here" Rory laughed as she exited the washroom in a black lace Diane von Furstenburg dress and a pair of black Christian Louboutin stillettos.

"Jesus Christ" Logan couldn't hide his reaction as a smile broke over his lips.

"Damn Gilmore, if this is what you had been like all those years ago, I can assure you that we would have made a magical pair" Finn laughed.

"You look unbelievable" Logan kissed her gently, putting his hand on the small of her back and taking a moment to appreciate just how short her dress was.

"Champagne!" Steph interrupted the moment as she popped the cork out of her bottle, "Here is to adulthood, and parenthood, and living these lives we have. In omnia paratus!"

"In omnia" the group repeated as Steph took a large swig of the champagne before passing the bottle around the group.

xxxx

"Can I buy you a drink?" Logan came up beside Rory as she stood at the bar, the music booming in both of their ears.

"I don't know" Rory turned to face him, leaning her elbows behind her onto the bar, "I don't know how my husband would feel about that" she smiled as she held up her left hand and wiggled her ring finger.

"Well what harm can a drink do?" Logan played along as he nodded to the bartender, "I'll have a scotch, and another of whatever the lady is having"

"How do you know I don't want something else?"

"Something tells me you've been nursing vodka soda's all night" Logan continued the charade, "I'm Logan" he extended his hand to her.

"Lorelai" Rory felt herself blushing as the bartender set their drinks down.

"Lorelai" Logan repeated, "That is an interesting name"

"It's my mothers" Rory grinned, "All my friends call me Rory"

"Well what can I call you?"

"You call me whatever you want" Rory took a small sip of her drink before looking back up at Logan, "So tell me Logan, what do you do for a living?"

"I am in politics" Logan fibbed, admitting what Rory knew was his secret passion outside of the business world, "How about you?"

"Politics" Rory repeated, the smile on her her face growing as she traced her index finger around the rim of her drink. "I am a flight attendant"

"So how long are you in town for?"

"Tonight" she told him as he took a sip of his own drink, Rory then picked hers up and downed it in one fluid motion before using the liquid courage to grab Logan by his hand, "Let's dance" she told him, pulling him behind her as he struggled to take a final sip of his drink before being forced to abandon it along with some bills.

"How would your husband feel about this?" Logan whispered in her ear as he took a moment to stop her movements and bring her body close to his.

"I think he'd be okay with it" Rory grinned as she began to find a rhythm to the music, "What about your wife?"

"Who said I have a wife?" Logan couldn't help but laugh as his hands found a place on her hips and their movements synced together, "I think that you are the most beautiful woman I have ever seen"

"Flattery won't get you anywhere with me" Rory too felt herself laughing as Logan wrapped his arm tightly around her and kissed the top of her head.

"I love you Ace" Logan told her as they danced, slowly, even though the beat of the music was accelerating, it was like it was just the two of them in the busy club.

"I love you too" Rory shouted back up at him.

xxxx

"Ace" Logan mumbled as his lips found nape of her neck and his hands found the hem of her dress.

"Logan" Rory couldn't help but laugh as she found his belt buckle.

He pulled away, breathless, and used his hands to lift her chin to him, "Are you ok? I mean after Catherine? It's soon"

"Logan" Rory laughed, "Not now, don't do this now" she kissed him once more, "I'm fine"

"And you want to?" he looked at her again, "In a bathroom"

"Anywhere" Rory found his lips once more before re-focusing her attention on removing the fabric between them.

It had been quick, it hadn't been sweet, but it had been what they needed. She smiled as she readjusted her skirt before exiting the bathroom. "I love you" Logan wrapped his arms around her from behind and deeply inhaled her scent as he kissed her cheek.

"We should go find the others" Rory smiled as she leaned back against him before taking his arms off of her and lacing her fingers between his.

"After you" Logan pulled the locked bathroom door open. As they exited the room he could see smirks and grins of the people who had been outside, he took a moment to tighten his grip on her hand as he scanned the club for their friends.

"I cannot believe you" Rory smirked as they walked back over to the bar, "Can I get a water please?" she shouted to the bartender.

"Cannot believe what?" Logan smirked.

"We just had sex in a bathroom" Rory giggled as she saw Steph stumbling towards them.

"Let's not tell anyone" Logan kissed her temple as he paid for the water and turned to watch Steph as she swayed towards them, Colin's hand on the small of her back, "You guys look beat"

"We're officially old" Steph stated simply.

"Back to the hotel?" Colin suggested as he kissed her cheek.

"You guys are no fun" Rory piped in with a smirk as she shouted over the sound of the music.

"Rory Gilmore wants to continue partying?" Finn wiggled his eyebrow.

"Rory Huntzberger wants to continue partying" Logan corrected him before turning to whisper in her ear, "Maybe we can keep partying back at the hotel" he nipped gently at her ear lobe, "Alone"

Rory couldn't help but feel herself flushing at his comment but luckily she knew someone else would comment on something unrelated before they even noticed her bright red face, "I want to go screw my wife" Colin interrupted as he drunkenly grabbed Steph's ass.

"But let's be serious, we all know it won't happen" Steph laughed as she shook her head, "Alright, it is 2am, we really should go" she stated while quickly peaking at her Rolex.

xxx

"We just need to check something" Logan grabbed Rory by her hand and pulled her back from their friends, causing her to look at him with confusion, "We need to...check our messages"

"Don't screw in the elevator" Finn called back behind him, "There are cameras, and you could easily find yourselves a front page news story"

"Seriously?" Rory laughed as Logan merely waited for the elevator door to close so that could pull Rory into the door as it opened and kissed her passionately.

"Come on, I just want some time with my wife" Logan laughed as he kissed Rory, leaning her against the wall as his kisses trailed their way down her neck, "This is about you and I, you said it yourself. Even though we are drunk and old, and not nearly as cool as we used to be, I still want you"

"That is weirdly sweet" Rory laughed as she took a moment to just rest her own body against his.

"I love you Ace"

"I love you too" Rory smiled, "Are you glad that we did this?"

"Got an expensive hotel room and had sex in a club bathroom?" Logan winked.

"Spent time together, alone, for the first time in a long time?" Rory corrected him.

"I wouldn't trade it for anything in the world" Logan assured her, his chin resting atop her head. "And tonight, which was clearly about me, but tomorrow, is about you" he promised her, "Because you have given me the best life, and the happiest life, and the best kids I could ever ask for. And today, even though you just gave birth a few weeks ago, you made tonight about me, and that just shows what an amazing, and selfless person you really are"

xxxx

"Logan!" Rory laughed as they browsed the aisles of Stand Books in New York City.

"Come on it looks funny" Logan laughed as he put the book, which looked to more or less be soft core porn down on the shelf. "Do you want to go somewhere else?"

"No" Rory shook her head as she found herself picking up a copy of a title that her father had suggested to her several months earlier.

"So you found something, finally" Logan announced with a wink, "Anything else?"

"No, I think I'm all set" Rory grinned, she was surprised that Logan had countered her attempt at spending a day together which was meant to be all about him, with something that was going to be all about her, but she knew that he was trying to show his love for her, the same way she was for him.

"So, next" Logan handed the cashier a bill to pay for the book, "We have to get you something to wear for your book party"

"Logan" Rory protested as she took the bag from the cashier, "Thank you" she smiled to the young man before following Logan out of the store, "I don't know why we have to make some huge deal out of this. It isn't my first book"

"So, it is still your book, and you deserve recognition for it, and the company wants to show you off" Logan shrugged, tightening his grip on her hand, "So we will find you a gorgeous dress, and some gorgeous jewelry and some amazing shoes, and you will be all set. I will wear a tux that I already have"

"It is vaguely sexist that you can simply re-wear something from your wardrobe, whereas I am required to buy something new" Rory told him quickly.

"Ace, I want you to have something new because the party is about you" he was interrupted by his cellphone ringing mid sentence, "Logan Huntzberger" he answered quickly, "Hey little man, how are you?" Logan's grin grew as he turned to Rory, who clearly looked annoyed, _Christian, _he mouthed to his wife who nodded with a smile, "You get to go to the state science fair? That is too cool, and to think you didn't think your solar system would cut it...yeah, Mom and I will be home in time to tuck you in tonight...of course we will be at the fair, and I am sure Grandma and Grandpa will even throw you a party" Logan continued as he and Rory walked hand in hand, "Alright, I'll talk to you later...I love you buddy"

"What was that?" Rory grinned as Logan put the phone back into his pocket.

"Well" Logan explained, placing a gentle kiss on Rory's temple as they walked, "Our son, as you know, put together a very intense, very life like replica of the solar system. Including everyones favourite former planet, Pluto, and what do you know, after all of the judging was done, he was selected by the faculty to show his exhibit at the State Science Fair"

"Well who would know that a project that you made would win an award" Rory smirked as she looked at her husband.

"I helped make the project" Logan corrected her, "Our son however did most of the work"

"Yeah, sure" Rory rolled her eyes, having seen the intricate, floating solar system at the science fair.

"He did" Logan laughed as he nodded to the Roberto Cavalli store, "Wanna look?"

"I guess I need to get something" Rory agreed as she allowed Logan to open the heavy glass door for her, "Are you wearing black or grey?" she asked him as she browsed the beautiful floral dresses.

"I was leaning towards grey, but whatever you want, I just want you to have a great night"

"As long as at the end of the night, I am with you, and my family, I can assure you it will be a great night"

"This is all too...printy" Rory made a face as she looked through the dresses on display, "I mean they are beautiful" she quickly added as she saw a sales associate staring at her, "But just not my style. I'm more of a solids kind of girl"

"Ace, you don't need to try to make these people feel better about their designs by pretending you love them" Logan put his arm around her shoulder as he walked towards the door with her. "You are Rory Huntzberger, you get to have whatever you want"

"Does that include a coffee? I could really go for a coffee right about now" Rory told him as they found themselves walking up the crowded streets again.

"I always knew you were easy to please" Logan laughed, "Let's get a coffee"

"And to think for all these years, you thought you had to show me the world, but really, you just needed to attach an I.V of coffee to me" Rory laughed, "Which reminds me, can we replace the espresso maker in the kitchen?"

"You want another espresso machine?"

"No, I want to get rid of that ridiculous robot that we have in the kitchen and replace it with a normal coffee maker that makes normal coffee and doesn't take up 5 feet of counter space" Rory corrected him.

"A robot?" Logan smirked at her.

"Fine, space ship"

"Ace, you chose that espresso machine"

"I chose it because we were at William Sonoma and all they had were those crazy fancy machines. You don't tell that sales woman that you just want a 12 cup coffee maker" Rory explained, "And I was redecorating after you moved out"

"You kicked me out Rory" Logan corrected her quickly, "You sent me a letter and told me not to come back"

"Logan" Rory looked at him sadly, "This isn't what today was supposed to be about"

"I know" Logan shook his head, "I'm sorry, we're good, everything is good now" he told her as he kissed her temple, "I love you Ace"

xxx

"Did you have a nice trip to the city?" Shira smiled as she cut gently through her chicken.

"It was great Mom" Logan smiled before taking another bite himself, "We didn't think you guys were home for another week"

"Well, we weren't supposed to be" Shira explained, "But we just decided we wanted to come home and see our grandkids, especially Catherine, she is so beautiful"

"Mitchum certainly has taken to her" Rory smiled, when Catherine has started fussing earlier, Mitchum had volunteered to go and take her to bed, he hadn't been seen since and every once in a while you could hear him talking or singing from up the stairs in her nursery.

"Well he has always had an odd love for children" Shira laughed, turning her attention to her other two grandchildren, "He certainly loves you two"

"I think it's just his own children that he doesn't particularly take to" Logan took a sip of his scotch. He certainly had been shocked when he walked into his home after getting back from the city and found his parents sitting in the kitchen with the kids, and the nanny having been relieved for the night. "What are Hon and Josh up to?"

"They are up at the Vineyard" Shira explained, "Hon says they want to have a party next weekend, grownups only. They were hoping the kids could all have a sleepover"

"And then after that we have the book launch" Rory nodded.

"What about my science fair?" Christian interrupted as he heard the adults making plans around him, "My state science fair is next weekend!"

"Your science fair is in the morning sweetie" Rory told him, "We will all be there, and then we will go out for a nice lunch, and then you can have a sleepover with Aly and Ty"

"Promise?"

"I promise we will all be there buddy, just like the one at the school" Logan assured him. "Why don't you tell Grandma about the science fair while Mom and I go try to pry Grandpa away from your little sister"

"Why don't you take care of that all on your own" Rory smiled as Logan stood up, "I want to hear all about the science fair"

"But you've already seen it" Christian told her.

"But I love to hear it" Rory smiled as Christian began to animatedly explain his story.

xxxx

"You'll have to give her up eventually" Logan leaned against the doorframe as he saw his father cooing over his baby girl.

"Not yet" Mitchum laughed, "As long as I'm holding her, there is nothing wrong in the world"

"I know" Logan laughed, picking up a stuffed animal from the floor and putting it on the shelf.

"You did a great job with them, son" Mitchum nodded to a photo of Riley and Christian which was on the wall.

"Well, I knew what I didn't want to be" Logan smirked.

"We've been over this" Mitchum stood up, gently placing Catherine in her crib, "I made mistakes, but just like you and your wife, we are all in a better place"

"I'm just kidding Dad"

"I know, I know" Mitchum clapped his hand on Logan's shoulder, "Regardless, I'm happy for you, for the life that you have, for having a house that is full of love, and laughter. Things that are so different from where you grew up. I'm glad that you have all of this Logan"


End file.
